CHAPTER TEN

Ashen Abyss

Specter

Racing up the decrepit stairs, Specter’s hasty steps reverberated through the worn building. The thick black smog impeded his progress, causing occasional stumbles and muffled curses as he bumped into things, forcing him to shift between thermal and night vision and ignoring the visual discomfort it gave him.

Reaching the top of the stairs, he darted towards the exit, emerging from the smoke filled restaurant. He skidded to a halt beside their dwindling pile of supplies that Marcus and the other robot had brought earlier. Specter’s three lenses locked onto the remaining items: discarded plastic scraps, a box of flares, almost-empty bags filled with gasoline, and two worn-out car tires. Not that far away from the items were two dead monsters, their necks twisted in unnatural positions.

‘No other bastards outside this time,’ he thought, scanning his surroundings again. His night vision lens made it easy, even in the deep darkness. He hastily stuffed the plastic into the tires, then poured the remaining gasoline over them.

Specter squatted to pick up the tires, pausing when he noticed the scratches and melted plastic on his arm, along with the remnants of torn clothes that hadn’t burned away. ‘Just a bit longer,’ he thought before he grabbed the rest of the remaining flares and got up.

He glanced up at the light blue barrier that was all around him. In the distance, he could see other streams of black smoke, marking the other pathways in and out of the cavern that held the Orb. ‘It’s going to be fine.’

He turned on his heels, darting back into the old restaurant. Charging down the stairs, he toggled between thermal and night vision as he entered the smoke-filled chamber. He quickly spotted Marcus and the other robot, both wielding shields to block the cavern entrance. Marcus was thrusting his spear, sending the sharp metal into a monster’s torso, then yanked it out.

A barricade of bloody, half-burned monster corpses lay stacked in front of the entrance, trying to block it completely.

‘Still alive,’ Specter thought as he inspected Marcus and the other robot, both smeared with filth and soot. They fought relentlessly behind the makeshift barrier while more creatures climbed through the hole, clawing at the dirt and rock to widen the passage. Some choked on the thick, toxic black smoke pouring in.

He dashed to his companions and slid to a stop behind them. “Get ready!” he screamed, pushing his speaker to its limit, hoping his voice would cut through the cacophony of screeching monsters. Though he didn’t feel pain or heat, even he could see the scorching inferno ahead and the rising temperature in the air. Just being this close to the inferno within the cave was enough to melt the plastic on his frame over time.

‘No way Marcus can endure this much longer.’

He ignited the flares, watching them burst into bright red light and heat, though the thick fumes smothered its effect. “Now!”

Marcus threw himself aside, clearing the way for Specter while stumbling over a corpse. As Specter rushed forward, a burning creature suddenly burst from the thick smoke and made a beeline toward him.

With a forceful front kick, he sent it hurtling back through the hole. It vanished into the smoke, skidding across the rough floor before plummeting into the cavern below—either to die on impact or be consumed by the raging fire that was everywhere within the cavern.

He slammed the flares into the gasoline-soaked plastic in the tires and sent them rolling down the hole one after the other. The tires turned into blazing balls of fire and smoke, tumbling down the edge. They collided with monsters below, incinerating flesh and spewing toxic fumes as they rolled onward.

‘Greenpeace is going to love us,’ Specter thought as he heard the sounds of monsters howling in pain or screaming in rage.

Specter crept deeper into the passageway, reaching the end and peering over the ledge. He cycled through his three cameras, surveying the devastation. The cavern was one of fire and black death, consuming roots, vines, and every other kind of vegetation in its fiery grasp. Once responsible for spawning monsters, most of the sacks were now charred husks. Every so often, a still burning sack exploded with a deafening bang, sending fire tearing through nearby creatures and rattling the cavern walls hard enough to crack rock.

Specter strained to make out the Orb’s location amid the chaos. He roughly had an idea where it was based on his previous experience here, but the whole cavern now looked different. Despite the infernal scene playing out before him, he could still see movement, hinting at some lingering guardians.

‘This has to be enough, right?’ he thought as he looked around the chamber as monsters burned up, fell to their death or simply died of smoke inhalation. But some creatures endured the flames, scaling the walls toward him and his companions, as if adapting to the fire and smoke.

‘Persistent bastards.’

Specter retreated from the passage as the other robot stepped forward, using its shield and spear to reinforce the barricade, shoving more corpses into the gap. The robot’s dented, bloodied spear told the story of the amount of fighting the three of them had already endured.

Specter then turned to Marcus, observing him rinse his head and gas mask with water, trying to clear away the blood and grime obscuring his vision while fighting a losing battle against the heat and exhaustion. Marcus’s rapid, troubled breathing was evident from the heaving of his chest and the troubled sounds he was making. The backpack he wore was dripping with blood from the Glass pieces he had collected whenever he could.

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“You good?” Specter asked as he knelt next to the man.

“What?” Marcus shouted, his voice muffled by the mask covering his face. He glanced up at Specter, the glass of his gas mask scratched, partially cracked, and still smeared with blood and dirt that he hadn’t managed to wash off. Specter could still see the man’s eyes, seeing how exhausted Marcus was.

Specter moved closer towards the man’s shoulder, grabbing it and establishing a connection that allowed him to share what he had witnessed inside the cavern: the disturbing amount of monsters that were still alive and the fact that they had run out of things they could set on fire and throw inside.

He then released the connection, taking up a position beside the other robot while grabbing his two axes again. ‘Marcus can’t take much more. He’s overheating, and the pain’s written all over him,’ Specter thought, studying him a little longer. ‘It’s a miracle he’s lasted this long. That gas mask from the pawnshop won’t hold up much longer—not in this thick, black smoke.’

As he and the other robot held the line, another burning monster rushed towards them, only to be impaled by the other robot’s spear before the monster could even reach them. Another monster lunged out of the curtain of black smoke, dashing past its dying companion that had the spear still lodged in its torso. It screeched as it charged forward, only to be met with a powerful shield bash to the face.

The creature staggered, giving Specter the opening to drive both axes into its shoulders. With a forceful kick, he sent the monster hurtling back through the passage, where it collided with another that had just climbed up. Both screamed as they plummeted down, their cries suddenly cut off.

Turning to his steel brother, Specter noted the extensive damage it had suffered. The torn and partially melted plastic on the front clearly hinted at who had done the lion's share of the fighting out of the three of them.

‘Big boy isn’t looking too good either.’

As Specter cycled through his camera feeds, he spotted more monsters crawling up the ledge and into the passageway, their hissing and violent coughing announcing their approach moments later. One of the monsters was actually on fire, howling in agony as it hurled itself forward through the hole, disregarding the spear thrusts and axe strikes before it finally dropped dead. Its companions followed suit, while the robots fought relentlessly to hold the line and maintain the barricade.

‘Keep it together, Specter. Every second counts,’ he thought as he head-butted a monster, then followed up with a violent axe swing to sever its head—just before another slammed into him, claws and teeth tearing into his torso.

“Get the hell off,” Specter roared, elbowing the creature with all his strength, when a sudden spear thrust from the side killed the assailant on the spot. He glanced over to see Marcus, panting violently as he pulled his spear free.

“Thanks!” Specter shouted, hoping Marcus had heard. “We only need to hold on a little longer!”

Amidst the chaos of roaring flames and dying cries, Specter barely registered what his companions shouted back at him. ‘I had hoped that the fire and smoke would’ve taken care of most of them by now,’ Specter thought, shooting forward through the black curtain and killing a monster thrashing around blindly. After finishing it off, he darted through the passageway and peered over the ledge again. Below, four more monsters clawed their way upward. He struck one in the face and stepped back, casting a final glance at the location of the distant Orb and the frantic movement within the cavern.

‘There is no end to them.’

Specter backed away carefully, almost tripping over a dead monster, and rejoined his companions. They stood firm against the wave of creatures, wounding and fighting them off, until a large figure pushed through the curtain of smoke. Despite soot and ash coating it, the hulking figure seemed untouched by the fire. It forced its way through, roaring and hissing as it clawed at the walls and ceiling, ripping out dirt and stone to widen the passage.

As it drew closer, it absorbed several spear thrusts before Specter threw an axe into its throat, causing the monster to finally collapse to its knees, bleeding onto the rocky ground. ‘We’re screwed if more of the big ones are starting to become resistant to fire and smoke as well,’ Specter thought, dodging an attack from another monster rushing in behind the dying behemoth. The robot beside him crushed the attacker’s neck with a shield strike before Specter sent an axe through its skull, just to be sure.

“Thanks for the assist,” Specter shouted, getting back into position and nodding to the other robot, who remained focused on the widened passageway in front of it, shield and spear ready. Specter then shifted his gaze toward Marcus, noting how much worse he was looking, clearly struggling with the heat and exhaustion. ‘I think we need to retreat. Lick our wounds and try again later,’ he thought, realizing the plan had fallen apart. Despite the hundred or so monsters felled by fire or their steel, many still remained, eager for the fight.

‘I didn’t factor in their ability to adapt, or that some could endure the smoke and fire to this extent. Shit... we’re still rookies, huh?. We know nothing about how fast these things mutate,’ Specter thought, eyeing the hulking monster still on its knees, its lower half bathed in blood while its twisted limbs twitched sporadically as it bled out on its knees.

Hearing a muffled groan, Specter glanced at his side. He saw Marcus dropping his spear and drop to his knees, gasping for air as he clutched his gas mask. The large robot rushed toward him, shoving Specter aside and stepping in front of Marcus protectively.

“It’s not safe here anymore. Marcus, we need to get you out,” the hulking robot urged, pulling him to his feet. Marcus gave a weak nod as they began to retreat. They climbed the stairs slowly, Specter keeping watch at the rear, switching camera feed to monitor for any monsters attempting to pursue them through the dense smoke.

‘This is enough for now. It’ll have to be,’ Specter thought, repelling a charging monster with his axes. He followed up with a swift kick to its head, slamming it into the nearby wall. He swung his axe at its neck, severing the head and splattering fresh blood across his frame. ‘There’s too many of them left. We’re alive and we’ve got plenty of Glass to show for it. But we can’t go back to this location for a while, if ever... not after this furnace we’ve left behind.’

He moved backward up the stairs, fending off another smaller creature that was on fire, its flesh charred and grotesque. Specter quickly dispatched it by slamming both axes into the creature’s skull at the same time.

“Pick up the pace, guys. There’s more of them coming in—” Specter called out, but he froze as the ground beneath him trembled and a shower of dust and debris peppered his metal form. He whirled around and saw Marcus’s fatigued frame freezing up as well, while the other robot braced against the wall, its shield raised to protect Marcus from the falling debris. He saw Marcus’s eyes widen beneath his gasmask as the rumble below them grew louder, accompanied by the sound of explosions echoing from the cavern.

‘The monster sacks? Oh, shit, shit, shit,’ Specter cursed inwardly as the stairs gave way beneath him. In the split second that he still had autonomy, he shoved Marcus closer toward the other robot just as the building started to crumble around them and Specter suddenly felt himself falling. The last thing he saw was Marcus and the other robot shouting at him as the cavern and part of the building collapsed in on itself. Smoke and fire swirled around, consuming him.