"Now's not the time to be playing pranks missy," Fiey growled.

"I'm not though? I don't really care whether you believe me or not," I shrugged. What I said is the truth. If she doesn't believe me then that's their loss.

"Oh wow, it seems like Laila is telling the truth..." Chen Ling muttered. When I turned to look at him, he was staring straight-faced at nothing noteworthy. He must be looking at the Status screen.

"Hm... it appears I'm not ranked tenth anymore," Sam added in. He too was looking at his Status. "I went down a whopping two ranks. I am now ranked twelfth in the world."

"And for me, I'm ranked seventh. Honestly, I don't feel a bit sad about this development." Chen Ling's lips curled as he ogled at the screen. Loud gasps rang throughout the tent as the crew members whispered to each other. The atmosphere went from calm chaos to everyone in lively spirits at just the drop of a hat. Fiery abruptly stood up from her chair, her eyebrows twitching after concluding that we weren't lying.

"Hmm... Something isn't adding up though," Chen Ling wondered out loud. "I'd understand if we dropped only one rank since you just appeared, but it's twice that we've been demoted."

"Oh, that? It's because my brother is probably ranked one, at the moment, as much as I hate the mere idea."

I would never hear the end of it once we regroup after all this hopefully blows over. Isaac is the type to gloat about his achievements and rub them in my face. He wants to milk any 'special occasions' dry until he doesn't get a rise out of my expressions. There was this one time when he received an award for straight A's throughout his three years in middle school. His boasting was like listening to a fork scratching a plate repeatedly on a loop. It was very grating to my poor ears. That all happened just because I made a simple bet that he wouldn't get those kinds of grades for three years straight. That one bet was where it all started, the moment when Isaacs's ego would grow little by little.

He doesn't explicitly show that side of him to others, aside from me, as far as I'm aware. I don't know if he's hiding it when I'm physically there, or if he just shows it in video games only. Either way, I hope his ego isn't so bad to the point where his critical thinking is... completely flung out the window.

Oops, I've gone on a tangent just from thinking about Isaac. Not a good look at all. I should snap out of it.

"For the respective ranks one AND two to be in America of all places, not to mention they're siblings! The chances of that happening are astronomical, I imagine. Just thinking of fighting the both of you gets my blood boiling..." Chen Ling was looking me up and down like a full-course meal ready to be ravaged. I felt shivers down my spine as I recoiled away from this gross display.

I let out an exaggerated cough. "Since you now know, we'll be here to help around until things die down. You don't have any problems with that, do you?" I narrowed my eyes at Fiey. She glanced back and forth between Sam and I, before letting out a sigh and ruffling her messy ponytail.

"Do whatever you wish. We'll need all the helping hands we can get-"

A loud beeping from across the room could be heard.

"Officer Fiey! We've finally gotten a signal from bunker three!" The superhuman with the big headphones yelled out. Fiey came shuffling toward them with the faintest of hope that they were still alive. I, Sam, and Chen Ling rushed over to the table just as Fiey was speaking directly to a microphone connected to a large green box with a white keyboard.

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"This is Officer Fiey from bunker five, do you copy!"

There was silence coming from the opposite end of the communication network. Fiey let out a frustrated sigh and tried again.

"This is Officer Fiey from bunker five! Can you hear me loud and clear, bunker three?"

Silence once more. Fiey hung her head down low, ready to give up on communicating with bunker three before gargled static erupted from the communications box.

"Ssst! THIS.... THREE...ATTACK...BACKUP." The voice was a garbled mess of static and cut-off sentences. Someone or something was jamming the signal between both bunkers. Before Fiey could shout a response, the signal between the bunkers was cut off.

"...We've lost contact with bunker three, Officer Fiey. What are your orders?" The communications superhuman asked.

"...There is nothing we can do. We cannot send superhumans over at bunker three. We're barely hanging on as is over at our end. Even if we did send superhumans over, bunker three is on the other side of Galveston. By the time the people we would send arrive, the place would already be occupied by the monsters. Damn..."

Hold on now... if bunker three is under attack and it's located on the left section of Galveston...

"We don't have to send anyone over there," I boldly announced. Fiey peeked over her shoulder with a furrowed gaze.

"Do you have some sort of plan we aren't aware of?"

"Actually, you remember how I said my brother is ranked first, right?"

"That happened just a few minutes ago, how could I forget?" She scoffed. I ignored her sarcastic remark and continued.

"Well, he's actually heading over to the left side of the city as we speak, with Sophie by his side. They might even come across bunker three. You know where I'm getting at, right?"

Fiey shot up quickly, her stress seemingly evaporating out of nowhere. "Sophie is here too?!"

"Yep. With those two working together, I'm sure they can save bunker three, if they aren't already dead that is..."

"...This is wonderful news!" Fiey beamed, her fierce scowl was now cast away and replaced with a cheerful smile. "If Sophie and Sam are here, does that mean the other Six Hunters are here in Galveston also?"

"Yes."

"Haha! Things are finally looking up for us! With The Six Hunters, you and your brother now here, we can finally put an end to these disastrous beasts!" Fiey cackled like a mad scientist that just finished their life-long project.

I kept my mouth shut, not wanting to ruin Fieys mood. If I said any more, I'm sure her glee would be replaced with despair. This nightmare will not end. These monsters will keep on coming until the portals are closed up, and we have no idea how to shut them off. There is no end to these monsters, we can only hope to subdue them and regain our forces. They are here to stay, and we humans will be in for a rude awakening. The Earth we all know and love is gone. We have dipped into a new age of utter destruction.

****

That Demos actually did it... To think he was fully aware of the red crystal's location and power. I thought I kept a tight lock on the secret of this knowledge... I guess even I can be ever so careless. I'm not mad, far from it, actually. It's been eons since I've felt this feeling of intrigue. I've only ever experienced this when I wrote the very cosmos, this 'universe' these mortals would call it. I figured that these fallen gods didn't know true entertainment, but I was proven wrong. Even someone as omnipotent as I can be incorrect.

Stretched out before my very eyes were billions upon billions of blue screens showcasing the events happening in Athiens and Earth. I am able to keep track of multiple POVs, including but not limited to, every single living being with a conscious I can tap into. Their senses, feelings, thoughts, etc. are one with mine. What they feel, I feel, what they see, I see. My boredom has led me craving for the experiences these mortals are so lucky to be involved in. I've seen countless wars, exploding stars, galaxies, and other civilizations rising and crumbling, and none have stimulated me more than the anticipation of the end. I want to see how this story will end for the fallen gods, and for the mortals.

I don't care who or what will survive in the end, be it a demogre, troll, dragon, or even acid-spitting worms. Only the strongest will survive, and the weak perish. That is the way of life and the way of death. Trample, kill, enslave, kick, punch, bite, breed... no matter the means, you must survive. And the one who stands at the very end through all that grief and bloodshed will finally deliver me what I've been craving for all these lifetimes on a silver platter. I must thank Demos for his little gift, even if he himself doesn't realize this is what I've wanted. Only an incompetent fool wouldn't know what Demos is planning. And I am no fool. If you fallen gods, or- what you are now referred to as the Pillars, wish to kill me, be my guest. I won't shy away from the challenge.

I wonder what sort of progression these mortals will experience next. I'm just itching to find out.