Mina hit the Stoneback like a falling shield wall.
The impact drove the air out of her lungs and forced the creature's spine down a fraction of an inch. Her shield slammed into the scarred patch Raul had called out, cracking stone and scale alike. The force rippled through her arms, up into her shoulders, teeth rattling in her skull, but she held.
The Stoneback roared.
Its body twisted violently, muscles bunching as it tried to buck her off. Mina locked her stance, boots grinding into the creature's back, shield braced hard as its spine surged beneath her. The scar split further, old damage giving way with a sound like grinding gravel.
"Now!" Raul shouted.
Mina drove the spear down.
The blade punched into the exposed flesh at the centre of the scar, sinking far deeper than she'd expected. Dark blood surged up around the shaft, hot and thick, splashing over her gauntlets. The Stoneback screamed, a raw, furious sound that shook dust from the ceiling.
It thrashed.
Mina was thrown clear, flung sideways as the creature slammed its body against the ground. She hit hard, rolled, came up on one knee with her shield raised just in time to deflect a snapping jaw that would've taken her head off.
Castle was already back in.
The undead charged again, this time low, ramming straight into the Stoneback's injured side. The collision staggered it, one leg buckling as bone and stone collided again. Castle's claws locked around the creature's forelimb and wrenched, forcing its balance off-centre.
Raul moved.
He sprinted in close with his trusty twin daggers. Prime Augury burned behind his eyes now, every motion of the Stoneback mapped in sharp detail. He slid beneath a sweeping claw, came up near its flank, and drove his blade into a thinner seam between plates.
The blade scraped, bit, then slid free as the creature twisted away.
"Too shallow," Raul muttered, already repositioning. "Mina—same spot. Deeper this time."
Mina didn't answer.
She charged again.
The Stoneback lunged to meet her, jaws wide, tail coiling to strike, but Castle slammed into its head from the side, knocking it off line just enough. Mina took the opening, shield-first again, crashing into the wounded section of its back with everything she had left.
Her spear followed immediately.
She drove it in with both hands this time, twisting hard, widening the wound Raul had opened. The Stoneback's roar cut off into a choking snarl as its legs faltered. One knee slammed into the stone, cracking the floor beneath it.
Raul was already there.
He leapt onto its back, grabbing onto broken scale and exposed muscle, hauling himself upward despite the creature's violent thrashing. He planted his feet against its spine and plunged his blade into the wound Mina had opened, angling down, searching—
"There," he gasped. "That's it—don't let it move!"
Mina braced.
She wedged her shield into the Stoneback's side, jamming it against the chamber wall. The impact reverberated through her arms, pain flaring white-hot, but she held, muscles screaming as the creature pushed back with raw, crushing force.
Castle reinforced her.
The undead wrapped its arms around the Stoneback's torso from the other side, locking it in place. Bone groaned. Stone cracked. The creature thrashed wildly, tail smashing into the ground, head snapping uselessly as it fought against three points of pressure at once.
Raul drove his blade in again.
Deeper.
He twisted, felt resistance give way suddenly, and then heat flooded over his hand as the blade struck something vital. The Stoneback convulsed, body arching violently as its roar shattered into a wet, broken sound.
"Now, Mina!" Raul shouted.
She pulled her spear free and raised it overhead.
For a heartbeat, everything slowed—the chamber, the dust, the distant hum of Aetherite in the walls.
Then she brought the spear down.
Straight into the wound Raul had opened.
The spear punched through muscle and stone and stopped. Mina leaned into it, forcing it further as the Stoneback screamed one last time, the sound tearing out of it like breath from crushed lungs.
Castle tightened its grip.
With a final, grinding crack, the Stoneback collapsed.
Its massive body slammed into the stone, shaking the chamber violently. Dust billowed outward in a thick wave. The creature twitched once… twice… then went still.
Silence.
Mina stood there, chest heaving, spear still lodged in the corpse. Her arms trembled as the adrenaline began to drain, legs threatening to give out beneath her.
Raul slid off the Stoneback's back and landed heavily on one knee. He stayed there for a moment, breathing hard, blade dripping dark blood onto the stone.
Castle loosened its grip and stepped back, head tilting slightly as if confirming the kill.
Arin was the first to speak. "It's down."
Victor let out a breath he'd clearly been holding far too long. "About time."
Mina pulled her spear free with a wet sound and leaned on it, shoulders slumping as exhaustion finally caught up to her. "That," she said between breaths, "was not just a Captain."
Raul laughed quietly, the sound shaky. "No. But we still did it."
Ghost flickered into view beside Mina, hovering close, presence warm and steady. She rested a hand against the undead spirit without thinking.
They didn't move for a while.
When they did, it was slower. Careful.
Victor circled the corpse with a professional eye, already muttering under his breath about density, colouration, and growth patterns. "This thing's been feeding here for a long time," he said. "Look at the Aetherite embedded in its hide. It's practically infused."
Arin nodded. "That explains the strength."
Raul wiped his blade clean and sheathed it. "Also explains why it didn't like being stabbed there."
Mina snorted softly, then winced as her ribs protested. She rolled her shoulders, testing movement. "I'm fine," she said before anyone could ask.
Tank lumbered in, stopping near the fallen Stoneback, head tilting as if assessing whether it needed to fight something else.
"Relax," Arin told it. "We're done."
For now.
Victor straightened, eyes gleaming despite the fatigue. "This chamber alone will keep us busy for days. The Aetherite concentration here is absurd."
Raul groaned. "Please don't say that like it's good news."
Victor smiled. "It is good news."
Mina looked back at the Stoneback's corpse one last time—the cracked plates, the shattered scar, the massive form now nothing more than stone and meat, not worth a contract anymore.
"Let's rest for a bit," she said quietly. "Then we can start mining again."
No one argued.