"Eviction."

Rubedo watched Krax's icon teleport across the grid.

Iron-Scale channeled his emerald core. He generated a concentrated cyclone to launch himself over the mahogany table.

The amalgamation slammed the rubber stamp down a second time. Iron-Scale twisted mid-air to evade the targeted glyph. He landed on the creature's massive shoulder and drove both star-iron daggers directly into its central neck.

Syra emerged from the shadow of the entity's own arm. She manifested a blade of solid darkness and severed the wrist holding the stamp.

The massive rubber tool clattered onto the carpet. The glowing red glyph on Torix faded into nothingness, freeing the Arachne to unleash a volley of barbed spears into the boss's exposed chest.

The five faces of the amalgamation opened their mouths simultaneously, blasting a piercing dial up tone across the boardroom. Syra clamped her hands over her ears and dropped to her knees while Iron-Scale tightened his grip on his embedded daggers to secure his footing.

The creature's severed stump violently reshaped itself. Thick bundles of black Ethernet cables erupted from the torn fabric of the suit sleeve. The wires whipped across the room and lashed onto Torix, surging high voltage electricity through the cables to paralyze him against the carpet.

Rubedo leaned closer to his console. "Those are networking cables. Sever the rubber coating to break the current."

Iron-Scale channeled his emerald core. He generated a concentrated wind blade and swept his arm downward, slicing through the black cables wrapping around Torix. Sparks showered the floor as the electrical current died.

Torix scrambled backward and fired a volley of barbed spears into the creature's chest.

The amalgamation absorbed the impacts and grabbed a massive steel photocopier from the corner of the room. The beast hurled the machine directly at Syra. The glass surface of the device glowed with a blinding green scanning light.

Syra manifested a dome of solid darkness to intercept the projectile, but the photocopier crashed into the shadow construct and the green light bypassed the dark magic entirely to illuminate her silhouette.

A stream of white paper shot from the machine's output tray like razor blades. The edges sliced through Syra's dark armor and left deep lacerations across her arms. She rolled across the carpet to evade the incoming paper storm.

"The box shoots flattened wood." Syra pressed her back against a filing cabinet. "The material cuts through my scales."

"It is a printer." Rubedo tapped his armrest. "Shatter the glass on top to blind the sensor."

Iron-Scale vaulted off the creature's neck and landed on the laminate table. He threw his star iron dagger across the room. The weapon pierced the green glass of the photocopier and shattered the internal bulb. The storm of paper instantly ceased.

Iron-Scale vaulted off the creature's neck and landed on the laminate table. He threw his star iron dagger across the room. The weapon pierced the green glass of the photocopier and shattered the internal bulb. The storm of paper instantly ceased.

The amalgamation reached into its jacket pocket and pulled out a handful of metallic cylinders. The creature tossed the flashbang grenades across the boardroom. The canisters detonated with a blinding flash and a concussive boom.

Iron-Scale and Syra stumbled blindly into the drywall as the flash overwhelmed their enhanced draconic and abyssal vision.

"My eyes burn." Iron-Scale rubbed his face and blindly raised a defensive wind barrier.

Outside the shattered windows, a violet light illuminated the falling debris. Krax inverted his gravity field to halt his descent thirty stories above the asphalt. He propelled himself upward and crashed back through the glass facade.

He landed on the laminate table and swung his greataxe to bury the blade into the amalgamation's bloated torso.

The creature grabbed Krax by his tusks. A red laser grid projected from the amalgamation's tie clip. The crimson beams tracked across Krax's armor, prompting a barcode scanner to beep loudly.

The system processed a financial deduction. Krax's bone plated armor instantly rusted and flaked away into gray dust.

"The beast steals my shell." Krax drove his fist into the creature's jaw.

"It is a price scanner." Rubedo watched the telemetry on his screen. "It removes value based on visual contact. Keep moving and stay out of the red light."

Torix deployed a wide net of monomolecular webbing to tangle the creature's legs. The amalgamation stomped its polished shoes against the floorboards.

A localized gravitational field activated around the beast, ripping the carpet tiles away from the floor. Swivel chairs and filing cabinets levitated into the air to form a swirling debris shield around the amalgamation.

"The furniture floats." Torix backed away from the rotating office supplies.

"Break the desk in the center." Rubedo pointed at the main monitor. "The creature draws its power from the corporate hierarchy. Destroy the boardroom table to sever its authority."

Krax gripped his greataxe with both hands. He channeled a localized singularity into the iron socket and jumped off the creature's chest. He brought the weapon crashing down onto the massive laminate table.

The table splintered into thousands of wooden shards. The floating office chairs plummeted to the floor, and the red laser grid sputtering from the creature's tie clip died completely.

The mahogany splinters settled across the carpet as the amalgamation staggered backward from the ruined desk. Torix launched a volley of barbed spears toward the exposed torso.

The creature unbuttoned its suit jacket to reveal a chest cavity lined with spinning steel cylinders, sucking the incoming projectiles inside.

A spray of pulverized metal and white confetti erupted from a slot near the entity's waist. Krax stepped over the debris to swing his greataxe at the creature's knee. The amalgamation swiped a plastic rectangular badge attached to a retractable lanyard.

A pane of reinforced glass slammed down from the ceiling directly in front of Krax.

The iron blade struck the transparent barrier and bounced away. Glowing blue letters spelling 'ACCESS DENIED' flashed across the glass surface. Up in the sanctuary, Rubedo observed the tactical feed.

He watched Krax strike the invisible wall repeatedly while Torix stared at his destroyed spears.

The game engine had weaponized the mundane security features of a corporate office. Rubedo crossed his legs and picked up a glass of water from his console. He let his forces struggle against the bizarre geometry.

A vanguard meant to conquer worlds needed to figure out a basic security door on their own.