[Exemplary] Family of Steel - Carved from the Blighted Oak

[Proto Man]

From the woods behind Snake Man, a beast emerged that caused Proto Man’s metaphorical blood to run cold.

At nearly eight feet tall, the darkspawn towered over the three individuals now assembled in the forest clearing. In place of traditional limbs, it had clusters of interlaced, root-like tendrils adorned with barbs. Its chest, disproportionately small, was shaped like a barrel and made of a worn material with the appearance of a tree log. The monster’s long neck had the appearance of its limbs and was nearly as long as well.

Most unsettling of all was the fact that the creature had once been Wood Man. That much could be seen in the fact that the android’s head, undersized like the darkspawn’s body, glared from the end of its twisting, vine-like neck. As it cleared the tree line, the haunting behemoth set its burning red eyes on the three individuals who were slowly backing away from it. Its dried lips curled back to reveal a mouthful of yellowed fangs that dripped black ichor.

“We have to run,” Snake Man rasped as he grasped his robotic sibling by the wrist. With a glare beneath his face, the red machine wrenched his hand free.

“No.” He shouted as the Proto Buster whirred to life. “You want to leave him like this? Would you want me to leave you like this? A corrupt monstrosity?” The android shook his head. “I couldn’t live with myself if I just away and let this creature continue walk away wearing Wood Man’s face.”

“I fight,” Mireya replied as she drew her bow and nocked and arrow. She pulled the string and readied her aim as Snake Man begrudgingly weighed his options.

After a beat, the serpentine machine relented. “I don’t intend to die because of your morals, Prodigal.” Snake Man responded as his own buster arm activated around his right hand.

The Wood Man creature, perhaps realizing the intent of the gathered trio, let out a roar that shook the leaves of the surrounding trees. It then came stampeding at its adversaries. Even before it had made the first step, it had to contend with arrows and Search Snakes, which threw themselves at it as quickly as their owners could fire them. Backing up behind his partners, Proto Man hoisted his trembling Proto Buster and bit his lower lip as he waited for the moment to fire the shot.

“Finish Buster!” With a loud whoosh, the super-charged blast erupted from the barrel of the weapon and slammed into the darkspawn’s undersized chest. The force of the impact was enough to not only stop the monster in its tracks but also cause it to reel backward. Proto Man shot a glance down at his feet and saw that he’d even been driven back and down into the earth as well. But despite the power of the attack, the beast didn’t topple into a screaming heap or collapse into a limp pile.

Instead, the cybernetic darkspawn paused just long enough to glare down at its scorched chest before lurching forward. It lashed out with its arm of interwoven tendrils, which separated as the defenders tried to pull back. Proto Man saw a flash of black before he was scooped off the ground and thrown backwards and up off his feet. His flight ended when he slammed into a tree and crushed it beneath his inertia. A beat later, the dazed preteen watched Snake Man slam into the ground a few yards away from him.

Dodging the sweeping attack with a graceful backflip, Mireya slipped her bow over her shoulder and drew her spear. She tightened her pale hands around the wood and braced herself as the monster set its sights solely upon her. Its burning eyes narrowed as it swung its frayed limb at her a second time, and this time, she was more than happy to roll away from the attack. Unlike the first time, she went forward instead of backwards, and when she popped up in front of the darkspawn, she drove her spear at the center of its chest. The harden obsidian struck home, but much to the chagrin of the hunter, the tip failed to bite into whatever material comprised Wood Man’s shell. A beat later, the monster lashed out with its right arm and closed its tendrils around her chest and arms.

“Faa—!” Mireya screamed as the vines constricted around her. She tried to thrash her way free, but the strength of the tendrils was too much.