As the two doctors fled along with the no longer possessed Mr. Dinkles, Twilight and the others braced themselves to do battle with the Grivelnox. The group immediately began attacking with the more powerful mundane weapons of their arsenal - concerned that using the magically enhanced ones might result in the Loki getting a bead on Twilight's magical frequency - but they found this only somewhat effective against the density of its armor plates or its sheer bulk. It quickly became apparent that despite the beast's limited offensive capabilities - it could only attack by swinging its tentacles at them - it was still a very effective vessel for the Loki.
"Don't worry!" Qwark called out as he noticed the others starting to flag. "There's plenty of ammo here! It'll go down eventually, and it doesn't have anything that can move fast enough to hit us!"
The Grivelnox glowered at Qwark for a moment, then seemed to smirk. Reaching over, it grabbed a large glass capsule containing a Wigwump - similar to the one they'd encountered in the forest - and dumped it into its mouth, devouring the creature and gaining the Wigwump's ability to breathe fire, as well as an ability to spit out burning creatures of some sort.
As he noticed the others glowering at him, Qwark deflated somewhat as he kicked one of the creatures off the platform. "Yeah, I'm just gonna keep my mouth shut now."
"Do that," Nefarious snapped out angrily.
As the group unloaded as much weaponry as they could, they quickly found that the flow of battle had changed. With the new fire abilities, the Grivelnox had a much more versatile arsenal of its own, forcing the group to be far more careful to avoid getting charred, and there were several close calls. On the other hand, the heat inside the creature weakened the armor somewhat, so the impacts of the groups rockets inflicted a great deal more damage.
Eventually, the Grivelnox withdrew. Before the group could pursue, another capsule was shattered, letting another dangerous creature loose to attack the group. "Destroy it before the Grivelnox can eat it!" Alister called out, quickly leading the attack.
With the concerted assault, it didn't take long before the creature went down...but it was to be replaced by another, and then another. By the time the creatures were dealt with, the reason for the delay tactics became apparent. The Grivelnox returned, grabbing another capsule. Inside was the Light Eating Z'grute that had brought them all upon this adventure initially, and the Grivelnox devoured it before their very eyes, despite the Z'grute's desperate struggles to survive. As the group watched, the red glow within the Grivelnox turned to blue, and an electric shockwave burst forth from its body, overloading a great deal of nearby machinery. It then opened its mouth wide and sucked in all the electrical energy dancing around the platform, fully regenerating its body.
"Well, that's not good," Twilight murmured softly. "It can regenerate itself endlessly as long as there's energy to devour now...and Ephemerus has a regenerating power core! As long as its inside here, it has access to limitless energy!"
"Then our only option is to get the Loki out of it," Nefarious concluded. "The Loki doesn't strike me as the sort to care about its victims, so the Grivelnox' own mind was probably erased when it took possession. If we can force it out, the Grivelnox will die, and the Loki as well as long as we can keep it from taking a new host!"
"On it!" Dr. Croid called out from a nearby floating platform. "Nevo, you've worked with this machine for years. You must know how to use it against him!"
"I can activate the Extractor," Nevo confirmed, "but it'll only work if he's standing still long enough to get a lock. You'll have to stun and trap him somehow."
Twilight quickly spun to look for a way to do that. As she did, the Grivelnox reared.
In Nefarious' mind, he felt everything come to a halt. He saw what was going to happen if no action was taken. Apparently, the Grivelnox had also absorbed a lashing tongue from something it had eaten while waiting for the Z'grute, and was about to lash out with that tongue, seize Twilight, and devour her. Due to the nature of the Grivelnox' saliva, as soon as it came in contact with her biological body, she'd suffer complete cellular collapse, allowing the Grivelnox to digest her and absorb her abilities without concern for any attempts she might make to fight back, as that would be impossible.
Within Nefarious mind, scenarios played out as he tried to find ways to prevent Twilight from being devoured. The first was calling a warning.
"Twilight, watch out!"
"What?" Twilight turned and saw the tongue. Shrieking in desperation, she drew forth her magic to protect herself. As the tongue came in contact with the magical fields, the Grivelnox fell dead and the magic faded. Twilight then turned, her eyes changed. The Loki laughed from her lips. "Thank you for that, Doctor," the Loki purred as Twilight's body took on the shape of her Nightmare, Dark Star. "This vessel is much more efficient..."
Seeing how the scenario would play out, it was immediately rejected. He considered trying to shoot the Grivelnox' tongue.
"Not on my watch!"
The rounds went flying. The tongue wrapped around the missiles, slamming them into Twilight's side. She screamed in pain, and was devoured.
The scenario was rejected. A third was considered, grabbing her and pulling her back.
Nefarious dragged Twilight back, digging his heels into the smooth platform as he struggled to keep her from being pulled in. She clung to him desperately...only to scream in pain and terror as electricity raced down the tongue into both of them, breaking their grip on each other before Alister and Qwark could come to their aid. The jaw came down around Twilight-
The scenario was rejected. A fourth possibility was considered, throwing himself in the path.
Nefarious screamed as he was pulled into the Grivelnox' mouth. The saliva did not work on his roboticized body, and he was able to use his laser chainsaw to cut off the tongue before he was crushed by the muscles of the jaw. He died, but the damage to the inside of the Grivelnox' mouth meant that it wouldn't be able to eat anything else for several hours, more than enough time for the others to finish it off. It would not be able to eat Twilight.
The scenario was selected.
"Watch out, Twilight!" Nefarious called out, diving between her and the lashing tongue. He felt it wrap around his body as he was dragged towards its mouth.
"Doctor!" Twilight shrieked out, starting to gather her magic.
"No!" Nefarious screamed out. "If you touch it with your magic it will take your body!" He watched as her fear turned to despair and the magic faded. Turning away, he watched as the mouth of the Grivelnox opened wide, extending his laser chainsaw. "My only regret is going out like an Agorian," he growled out deep in his throat, "but today is a good day to die!" As he was pulled in, he leveled his blade at the base of the tongue.
Before the jaw could fully close, the entire Grivelnox shook, bending at the middle from a heavy impact. Staring out of the hanging jaw, Nefarious goggled as he spotted Qwark, pulling back a single fist. "You do not!" he roared out, leaping into the air and delivering a kick to the Grivelnox' head that sent it careening across the platform, tongue lolling out as it was left completely stunned. "Make my LSBFF cry!" Qwark concluded firmly. Stomping forward, he grabbed the tongue and ripped it in half, pushing Nefarious away now he was free. "Nefarious, I still don't like you personally, but you are Twilight's first prospective boyfriend, and for nearly throwing your life away to save hers, you officially have BBBFF dating approval!"
Nefarious blinked for a time, stunned beyond belief. "Uh...thanks?" he offered in confusion, still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that yes, he had just tried to do a cliche heroic sacrifice and yes, he now had to live with knowing he'd made the attempt. "But I don't think it'll stay stunned long with its tongue ripped in half..." In fact, the Grivelnox was already starting to thrash.
"I've got it!" Qwark proclaimed as he leapt forward, catching the Grivelnox in a full nelson and immobilizing it. "Shoot, Docs!"
Nefarious stared. His scientific knowledge proved at war with his senses, as there was no way Qwark should have even been able to put the Grivelnox in a full nelson hold when one of its limbs was bigger than his entire body, let alone actually immobilize the creature in that manner. Finally, he closed and covered his optics, not wanting to deal with it.
"But..." Nevo called out worriedly. "But if we miss, we might rip your soul from your body!"
"Then don't miss!" Qwark called back.
"Do it!" Alister ordered.
The Protomorphic Energy Extractor activated, the beam locking onto the Grivelnox as it started pulling the Loki out. Nefarious and Alister rushed forward, using their Vac-U's to help extract the spirit. As it became visible, Twilight activated her RYNO Protosuit and unleashed its full payload, shattering the spirit's grip on the Grivelnox.
Qwark released the now dead behemoth. "Well, that takes care of that-" he began, brushing his hands against each other.
With a roar, the Loki lunged for Qwark, only for Nefarious to leap between them and backhand it to the platform, where it lost all cohesion and dissolved. "For once you're right, Qwark," he stated bluntly. "Nobody makes Twilight cry on my watch, either." He blinked in shock as Twilight glomped onto him, squealing happily. "Uh...?"