Episode 50: The Rise of Mecha-Tiamat Beta Report

The crew pays a visit to the Zone to question Father Oz about his dealings with Shago of the Blue Wing and the magisters. Oz is ambivalent, saying, "I make stuff if people give me bits. You gave me those death dragons and alhoons and scores of dead goblins, and look what I made for you!" He points to an incomplete dragon bone golem and a boneless goblin flesh slug construct dubbed the floulder. The crew recoils somewhat.

Spark asks about Oz's work for Shago; he mentions a huge dragon construct he worked on but had to flee Shago's base. He suggests the underwater entrance as a good place to sneak in. Spark thanks Dr. Oz, expresses inspiration from the work, and proposes finishing it, offering him bilogs and suggesting he go to Lola's Comfy Kitchen to relax, get inspired, and start a new project.

Nia worries about letting him go cause trouble elsewhere. Spark argues that Oz is unhinged but not malicious, hoping he gets inspired to build some kind of healing bibingka golem next. Spark wants to burn the floulder but lacks enough fuel; Lance offers to disintegrate it, and Spark agrees. He locks the dracogolem thing in the revamped workshop and magi-locks the place to futz with later. Lance shows off his new demi-plane music studio, and he and Spark lay down the new track, 'Down down in goblin town.' El considers finding some Zelda for her son Link but lacks the time.

They find out from Oz that the mecha dragon thing is almost complete, but the baron knows the forces closing in on the Zabar base are too much for the BTT to handle. So, she proposes a plan: use the adamantine ident-a-hedron to call Chagroth Durinhelm to destroy the Talon of Tiamat's armies at the Zabar Volcano, then rebuild the brewery after he wrecks it.

Chagroth agrees, and the Blackjack flies nearby to entice in the enemy and get a first-row seat to Chagroth's work. He summons a plane full of earth elementals and a million magic missiles, getting the volcano to vulcanize a bunch of the others. It's a total rout. Nia records it for posterity, and Malfador can gloat later. Spark then activates the reliquary drive and rockets the Blackjack from Zabar to outside Kaneyama, puts air bubbles around the officers, and they jump into the sea with Mekkamutt 2.0 paddling under the waves into the Blue Wing base. They surface near a tunnel entrance while Nia makes them invisible, then Lance warps them past all the guards. A patrolling dracohydra gets a whiff of the crew, but Nia dominates his mind and sets him to humping all the nearby guards (Oz mentioned he included reproductive organs by accident).

The crew then finds themselves in a liquid metal foundry and has a running battle with draconians and magma ropers over gears and gangways toward General Shago.

They eventually find the abishai and a slain blue dragon with a removed heart. Spark hears the voice of Way that he is trapped inside the dragon. El wants to kill it but also knows how to save Way, so she asks Ashaya. The goddess reveals that Way is in another dragon, a larger one in the back, but they can save him if they get him out of his containment unit.

Spark rushes to the back and through an illusory wall to see Mecha Tiamat and Way in a crystal battery unit. The wall collapses, and El feels a wave of Evil.

Mecha Tiamat is a true avatar of Tiamat and incredibly powerful. Its fear is oppressive, its breath terrible, the teeth and claws huge, and it has crazy powerful magic, too. In a few seconds, between Mecha Tiamat and General Shago, the crew is battered and bruised. They focus on saving Way and put everything into destroying his containment unit. Lance does the most, releasing disintegrating energy that destroys the contraption and El, weakened from the draconic onslaught, rushes to Way and protects them both in a resilient sphere. Everyone then rushes to Nia for evac, but Mekkamutt is melted before he can make it back. Lance warps back El and Way while Spark drags back an unconscious Wicked Mind and Hivali, who fell from proximity damage. Nia recalls them to safety. The crew realizes that Mecha Tiamat is stronger than what should be within the Divine Gate and notes the similarity to the massive construct body that Malfador is now using. Constructs seem to be the key to allowing avatars to manifest their full powers. With this knowledge, the crew heads back, and Nia visits Cabron to discuss her becoming the Royal Consort. Cabron is very happy to have Nia but must reveal his great secret, and pulls up the silver horns on his forehead to reveal two wriggling tentacles.