“Everybody get down!” Pete warned from the back.

  Pepper was still in shock as to what was going on. His ears were ringing from the concussive blast that shook the building itself. He turned around to see Pete reach out and slam his hand down upon a large red button. By the time Pepper’s head snapped back around he saw the heavy metal plate pivot down from the ceiling and slam against the wall.

  The metal clang which rang out didn’t help Pepper’s hearing. A new wave of a loud screeching cry blared within his mind from the metal’s slammed after effect. He then watched as the Colonel staggered back towards the center of the room.

  “Quick! Everyone, rally around me!”

  Pepper wasn’t really sure what the rally around me meant, but his best guess was that the man wanted him to get closer. Pepper, Pete, and a newly arriving chef that he was sure was Jez all squeezed in close. The military leader retrieved a small device out of his pants cargo pocket.

  The distinct sound of gunfire immediately erupted outside. Then small thunderclaps exploded, but nowhere near as massive as the first defining detonation. The chaos of outside didn’t disturb the Colonel however, he calmy tapped away on the black device. A quick push of a button and the device butterfly opened up and illuminated a deep purple light. There in the center was the distinct rune icon just like on the rune cards.

  Law pressed down on the rune once it illuminated. A sphere of purple energy pulsed out, encapsulating them inside. Pepper looked over the orb and couldn’t help but analyze the similarities it portrayed to that of an energy defense shield he had seen in upper tier matches. “Don’t worry, this should hold us until help arrives.” Colonel Gamble stated.

  It wasn’t but a half second later that Pepper trembled as the entire front wall of the restaurant burst inward towards them. The metal flap which had been there to shield them, had hurdled directly towards them. Pepper brought his hands up in front of him to block in case the energy shield failed. Though he knew his effort wouldn’t have done anything to prevent the damage the metal would do, he couldn’t help his natural instincts.

  The distinct metal clang blared into his ears, however, and when he peaked open one eye, he saw the shield had held. A quick glance to investigate and he discovered the metal plating had ricocheted off the energy shield and was now laying at a slant against the far wall.

  There was nothing but a hazing dust cloud in front of them, with scattered bricks and pieces of the tables and chairs all around them. That was when a new round of gunfire rang out and Pepper narrowed his gaze to try and see through the veil of debris. The first thing that caught his sight however, was the corpse of a golem.

  “Amp… is that a golem I see?” Pepper muttered to his familiar.

  Amprage was standing just in front of his bonded and remained in a protective stance. “My scans inform me that it is. It’s power core is currently at 50% and… it isn’t alone.”

  Pepper’s eyes widened and then he watched as the golem began to move. The dust cloud had now evaporated to the point that Pepper could see there were three golems. Each one stood roughly 10-13 feet tall when standing directly upright. The other two golems stood across the street and were formed in what Pepper analyzed as a defensive position.

  The two golems stood in front of carved stone pillars. Beyond was a large stone staircase which led up to a set of four double doors. His eyes then caught the slight movement of individuals running down the steps and used the pillars as cover and concealment.

  His mind was curious about where the explosion had come from though, for he saw no damage to their side of the street. But that was until he saw the rocket propelled grenade launcher crest out from behind one of the pillars. One of the individuals stepped out and into the street, the grenade launcher already on his shoulder and what looked like a firing stance.

  To Pepper’s amazement, the individual was wearing a rubber penguin mask but a full 3 piece business suit. He could see there was some style of military rifle slung upon his back. The man steadied his sights for another half second and then depressed the trigger. The rocket went streaking across the street with a swoosh, and arrived with a massive bang.

  Pepper couldn’t see at first what the man was firing at, but then he saw the first dark navy blue golem arrive. Pepper was just able to catch a brief glimpse of the golem’s right shoulder. For there in the center was painted a distinct law enforcement badge. The arms and shoulder blades were etched from what looked to be pure granite. But the chest and back pieces were pure metal. At the very top of the metal frame were red and blue flashing lights.

  The first law enforcement golem charged in and speared one of the golems across the street. Their large frames crashed into the stone pillar behind them and caused a massive crack to tear upwards within the column. Chunks of rock fell down and clanked against them both while the police golem slammed fist after fist against his opponent.

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  As the two struggled, Pepper watched as the next law enforcement golem arrived, but this one entered the scene by baseball sliding down the center of the street. The figure planted its feet and then leapt upwards, two massive custom Gorgon G55 Golem Pistol were in its hands. The golem brought each pistol out to either side, extending his hands out as if he was a gunslinger of old shooting it out in the center of town.

  The first shot rang out from the police golem and punched a massive hole clean through the villain who had crashed inside Pete’s shop. The edges of the wound made it appear as if the rock had melted away and chunks of lava like goop was all that remained around the wound. But just as quickly as the first villain fell, the pistol on the golem’s opposite side fired.

  The second shot blasted the head of the other golem clean off. A bright flash of light pulsed outward in bright rays of light which temporarily blinded Pepper. He knew it was the power core which had just been snuffed out of existence. The first police golem now free quickly went to work in throwing off the destroyed rock corpse.

  Amprage barked and Pepper quickly scolded him, telling him to be quiet. The defensive energy shield that Colonel Gamble provided them had already proven its’ strength and Pepper did not worry over his safety. He was rather on the edge of his seat now and wanted to get even closer to the action.

  Pepper’s imprisonment within the energy shield caused his other senses to heighten, however. As he peered out from behind the translucent wall his ears grabbed hold of large thudding of footsteps approaching. A new law enforcement golem arrived, this one carrying a giant metal shield as if he was a medieval knight.

  The timing appeared to be perfect as it lowered its shield and braced behind it. The other two golems dove towards their partner and ducked down behind the cover he provided. It was an instant later that Pepper watched as two rockets streaked into view and then exploded against the metal surface. A large burly voice cried out from a speaker that Pepper assumed was installed on one of the golems. “Press forward!”

  The law enforcement golems stood in unison, the third now carrying its shield out in front while the two behind it unleashed a volley of rounds from their weapons. A crackling noise of disturbance arrived just beyond their view, but they quickly discovered a line of men and women in tactical law enforcement gear were the source. They clambered down and around the debris while continuing to give chase of the thugs.

  The energy shield began to flicker, and Pepper could see the light was beginning to fade. He turned his attention to Law who was quickly powering down the device and folding it back up. By the time he looked back the energy shield was gone.

  “Well… as expected. It held out as long as it could, which just happened to be the perfect amount of time required.” Colonel Gambel said.

  “And here I was thinking that my metal plating would do something. Sheesh… oh boy, oh boy what-a-mess.” Pete said and Pepper could see that he reached up and scratched his head.

  “Are you sure you want to be a Golem League gladiator?” The Colonel asked.

  Pepper turned and could see the officer had a playful yet inquisitive look on his face. “Of course, but why do you ask?”

  The Colonel quickly shifted to a slightly smug expression. “Oh, just watching you during that exchange. Seemed like you were ready to make a difference in this world. As if you wanted to chase after those bad guys yourself. It isn’t too late to make a career change kid.”

  Pepper shrugged off the suggestion. “I’ve just never seen law enforcement golem’s before, and nothing like that as far as teamwork. But… you really need them here huh?”

  “I’m a military man, not a cop. But, one thing I do know, evil will always break any and all rules, regardless of what you say, or how you feel.” The Colonel finished with pressed lips.

  Pepper walked to the edge of the exposed wall and looked down at the destroyed Golem. He looked inside the finishing wound just long enough to see a distinct controller rune card feather. “That is a Zipline RK Transmitter.”

  The Colonel who was now standing beside him looked glanced down at what Pepper was looking at. He then returned and shrugged. “Is that supposed to mean something to me kid?”

  The two locked eyes and Pepper took a deep breath. “Well, you’re thing is demons. Mine… is Golem’s and the parts that go in them. That specific chip is apart of a controller card, but not just any. It is specifically designed for Quintek FreeFall – Model Y’s.” The Colonel now appeared curious and didn’t answer, but rotated his hand and finger around for Pepper to continue. “Those things are only able to transmit a maximum distance of 300 meters. That means, that whoever was controlling them is fairly close by.”

  Amprage then chimed in. “I’ve completed a quick scan and can confirm the signal is still active.”

  “See!” Pepper exclaimed.

  The colonel looked down at the familiar and then back up to Pepper. He quickly turned his head around and when he found what he was looking for he let out a loud yell. A few seconds later one of the tactical officers arrived.

  “Sir, are you hurt? Is anyone else injured?”

  “We’re all fine, but listen.” The colonel pointed his finger directly towards the golem. “This golem has a Quintek FreeFall – Model Y controller card in it. This familiar has confirmed the signal is still active. You need to get a 400-meter cordon established right away. This chips maximum range is 300-meters, so there is a chance we can box them in before they slip away.”

  “Roger that, I’m on it sir.” The officer quickly turned and depressed a button on the radio. “Command Post, this is A1322.” The man paused and waited his reply before he continued. “Be advised, I need a 400-meter cordon established. Our perpetrators operating their golems were controlling them from roughly 300-meters out, and they’ve only gotten a few seconds of a head start. Drone 3,5,7 cover East by North-East, Drone 2,4,6 take South and South-East. Drone 1 on me.”

  The officer ended his transmission and then gave a quick fist bump to the Colonel and Pepper. “Thanks for the help, be safe out there.”

  “You too officer.” The colonel replied and left Pepper feeling like he had spoken for them both. “Good catch kid, I guess that league knowledge does come in handy every once and a while.” The colonel smiled and then gave him a slight nod. “You be safe kid.”

  The entire event that had just unfolded before his eyes left him baffled. He finally blurted out the only thing that was coming to his mind within that moment. “Does this happen often?”

  The colonel turned and smiled to him. “Welcome to the big city kid.”