Their imaginations ran wild with ominous scenarios, envisioning some dark ritual or process that required the lives or energies of those unfortunate individuals. The thought that such an operation was being carried out on a massive scale filled them with a mixture of dread and determination.

Before long, a massive door on the floor emerged and from it, a bunch of robots began to appear and fly around. Terry was expecting to see some androids made of metal, so he was surprised to see something that truly looked like junk.

The robots were gray, they had short but thick legs, but they also had long arms with only three fingers in each of them. Their head was massive and looked pretty durable like it was supposed to be some kind of cockpit... They came out slowly, but soon they began to fly and then they disappeared.

"They don’t have mana, so I can’t feel them," Vanessa said and then she showed a nervous expression.

"Make your wind blow around us, that should help you find them," Terry declares.

Vanessa realized that and soon did that, it didn’t take long for the group to notice some areas where the wind was blowing more difficult. Gustavo used his Telekinesis, but he still had to put a lot of effort to make two robots collide against each other. At least that damaged their bodies and deactivated their invisibility.

However, before the others could do anything, they realized that the wind would stop or weaken their attacks... While they wondered what they should do, they suddenly felt their bodies being pushed down by something.

"What the... gravity?" Fernanda asked while sweating cold.

As the group continued to engage in their intense battle against the fortress’s defenses, a troubling realization dawned on them. The enemy seemed to have orchestrated a campaign to capture those who were in proximity to the portal, utilizing a powerful robot armed with gravity manipulation magic. This revelation added a new layer of complexity to their mission, as they now had to grapple with the questions of how and why the enemies were able to execute such a precise and coordinated abduction.

Gustavo and Fernanda used their Telekinesis to decrease the effects of the gravity magic, but they were still suffering the most. Terry, Rebecca, and Vanessa weren’t suffering that much thanks to the magic defense of the armor.

"Cancel the wind magic," Terry said.

Vanessa obeyed and also began to fire lightning bolts. Most of them hit some of the robots despite the fact that she couldn’t see them. At first, Terry thought that the heat of the robots bodies helped Vanessa, but that wasn’t the case.

The apparent randomness of lightning strikes is due to the complex and dynamic nature of thunderstorms. The paths that the leaders and streamers take can be influenced by a variety of factors, including the distribution of charges within the cloud, the presence of conductive paths on the ground, and even the topography of the land.

Heat does play a role in the overall process, as the rapid and intense heating of the air along the lightning’s path causes it to expand explosively, creating the shockwave that we hear as thunder. However, it’s not heat itself that guides lightning to specific targets; rather, it’s the intricate interplay of electrical charges, electric fields, and the characteristics of the environment that determine where lightning strikes. Maybe the mana inside the robots did that...

Terry jumped and then fired numerous fire spears in all directions. It hit some robots and then he kicked the air with all his might... Even without a foothold, he managed to charge toward one of them.

In the next moment, Terry kicked one of the robots and made the entire thing tremble a bit and show itself, but at the same time, it emitted a powerful wave of electricity that shocked him. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

The armor decreased most of the damage, but Terry was still unable to move for a full second... and his kick didn’t even damage the robot that much.

"I guess I can’t hide the sword for long," Terry thought. "I wanted to level up my boots for a bit longer, but it can’t be helped."

Terry’s landing was swift and decisive, his armored boots hitting the ground with a solid thud. As he touched down, he swiftly drew his sword and gripped its hilt firmly. With a quick motion, he activated the blade’s energy, causing it to glow with a fierce light that cut through the darkness surrounding them.

In a rapid sequence of movements, Terry unleashed three magic-infused blade attacks towards the same target – the imposing robot that had been causing havoc. The blades streaked through the air, each one honed to perfection as they sailed towards their mark. However, what followed was unexpected. The robot’s mechanical frame, originally an intimidating monolith of metal and magic, was suddenly cleaved into several parts, the force of the attacks causing it to disintegrate.

But there was more to the story. As the robot’s mechanical pieces fell apart, Terry’s shock deepened as he witnessed the cockpit of the machine open up. From within emerged a figure, a human body naked and vulnerable. It was a shocking realization – the once-threatening machine had contained a person. Terry’s actions had led to the person’s demise, and the horror of the situation struck him deeply.

The atmosphere turned somber as the group took in the sight. The naked body lay lifeless before them, a stark reminder of the high stakes of their mission. Terry’s actions, though driven by the need to protect, had inadvertently caused a tragic outcome.

"... Was that person..." Rebecca hesitated.

"Don’t think about it! I said not to hesitate!" Terry shouted.

In a sudden turn of events, the surroundings came alive with a metallic symphony. Towering forms emerged from the shadows – massive robots that dwarfed the humans in both size and power. These colossal machines surrounded the group, their imposing frames forming an impenetrable circle around them. Each robot’s mechanical joints moved with an eerie precision, their design a blend of technology and arcane magic.