119 The Real Challenge

But no matter.

The Collector now had the capacity to leverage a moment of surprise, feinting that it did not know the mechanisms of the creature's precognition and leading it into a counter. And with weapons such as the Shinchu's purifying light and monomolecular claws, the Collector could turn any moment of weakness into an instantly lethal blow.

By now, the goblin swarm had begun to inch back, but the Collector conveyed its intent to its carrier unit, and in turn, he gestured for the swarm to stand back.

This battle was the Collector's own to savor and devour now. The goblins instead would watch from the sidelines, in reverence at their king standing to defend them against a might that none of them would ever be able to match. 

The enemy specimen looked to the Collector, then to the goblins, and understood that the swarm did not move on behest of the Collector's will.