This is it. We pad down the tenth floor corridor in silence. No plants. No monsters.

Luci’s light reflects on a trail of browning blood dampening the carpet. We follow it until we reach the door to the terrace. There’s a bullethole puncturing the glass, cracks splintering from the center like a pointed star.

Pushing forward, Elias opens the door and steps outside.

The final boss arena.

It reeks of blood. Luci retches again, though nothing comes up. I feel the bile rising in my own throat too.

Prior to this morning, it must have been a very nice common area. I can imagine the concept art as a centerfold in the developer’s pamphlets: planters overflowing with freshly trimmed boxwood, brand new built-in grills, a seating area warmed by outdoor fireplaces and shaded with artsy overhangs. I might have even seen it on a billboard, once upon a time.

Now the grills and seats have been crushed. The boxwoods spill from shattered planters, the potting soil mixing with pools of blood. The brick tile, once clean and inviting, is hidden beneath chopped up fish, dismembered wings, and human gore.

All because of that giant white disc, presented like a trendy new centerpiece.

Once again, alien symbols appear in front of me, then transform letter by letter into readable text.

Quest Updated! ONWARD

You have reached the location of your quarantine zone’s designated portal station. Use it to avoid reconstitution.

Objectives:

- Find the portal station: Complete

- Activate the portal station: In Progress

We edge outside, awkwardly piling together in between the door to the East Tower and the portal. With a shiver, I untie the hoodie from my waist and zip it up. The air feels much colder now than on the ground. Chilled gusts tear across the rooftop. Without any buildings around us, there’s nothing to buffet the wind.

There’s about ten feet of room on either side of the disc, giving us space to move without triggering the matriarch’s wrath. Still, it doesn’t seem right to get too close. Even though it’s dormant, the portal emits a low-pitched hum.

Besides, more danger lurks on the opposite side of the dais. I can see the door to the West Tower. Vines spill out from shattered glass, shifting and winding in the shade of the building. Three feet in, where the sunlight hits, the vines end in poised, motionless fingerlets.

“Elias, do you still have that ‘Hunted’ status condition?” I ask.

“Yes,” he answers, eyeing the plant. “You don’t need to worry. It attacked only when I was within arm’s reach.”

“And your thumb?”

“It’s fine.”

We dump our bags and extra weapons along the wall. At this point, all we have left are an extra crowbar, another baseball bat, and the bug spray. On second thought, I tuck the bug spray into my waistband.

The amp lands next to Ron with a thud. He plugs the cable into his bespeckled bass and rests a finger on the switch. I get the impression that his high has worn off. He’s still maintaining a beach-worthy chill, but that lazy smile of his has hardened into something with a bit of edge. A bit of grit. Like he’s ready to put the piña coladas aside and step on stage for his next gig.

“We doin’ this?”

“We should go over our strategy first,” Elias says.

No one replies.

“That means you,” says Luci, elbowing me.

“Yeah, sure. Um, well…” I answer. Off to a good start. Inspiring confidence. Definitely showcasing some leadership abilities. “Ron and Elias will activate the portal. It’ll take one minute to work. No matter what, Ron needs to stay on it since he can take the hits. The rest of us don’t need to join until either the matriarch is dead or there’s a few seconds left.”

“Um, let’s see, what else. Ron, you’ve got your guitar. So when the matriarch launches her first attack, that’s when you play. If it looks like the noise is really flustering her, keep going. But I kind of doubt it’ll do more than hold her up a second. In which case, wait for Elias to attack, then start bashing her with everything you’ve got. Elias, remember, you’ve got the first hit. Make it count.”

“I will.”

“So after that, Ron, you try to keep her focused on you. Elias and I will try to attack from her flank. Luci, just shoot when you can.”

“Anything I should aim for?”

“The head I guess. Maybe where the ears are? That seems to be their best sense. Wait… do fish even have ears?”

“Fish have inner ears in their skull,” replies Elias. “Behind the eyes.”

“And you just have that trivia rattling around in there, huh.”

“Her hearing is also a weakness,” he continues. “If she reacts poorly to gunshots, it may work in our favor to keep her hearing intact.”

Ron chimes in. “Remember the little dudes. Usually they just pick at the leftovers, but I seen ‘em come in if the old bat takes too long.”

“Good point. Maybe save your ammo for the mobs,” I say.

“Once you’re out of ammunition though, you need to focus on staying out of the way,” adds her uncle. “Do not come onto the portal until you must. You can’t afford to take a direct hit.”

“What about Helen?”

“I got some good melee practice in. I can dodge,” I say. “I’ll be okay.”

“For sure,” she replies, which I’m beginning to think is code for ‘I don’t believe you.’ She draws the gun from her waistband, tightening her hand around the grip. She seems eager. Determined. Like me, her method to maintain sanity seems to be go-go-go. No time to think. No time for solace. If she sits still, she may never get up again. “So that’s it then? Are we ready?”

“Yeah. Maybe. I mean yeah,” I say. Like a champion. I balance the remaining two molotov cocktails on an intact planter. “These are a last resort. It’s windy, and we don’t want the matriarch dripping fire on us. She’s probably less susceptible than we are. And try to be careful of the vines. Especially Elias.”

“Of course,” he replies.

I let out a long, steady breath. “Okay. Let’s um… Yeah, let’s do this.”

Ron lifts the amp. “Right on.”

“Wait. I have something to say.” Luci steps in front of us. God, she’s small. Five feet, maybe ninety pounds at most. Her lips are cracked, eyes underlined with smudges of mascara. She’s not reapplying her make-up anymore. When did she stop? It seemed important to her. It should be important to her. She should care about make-up and homework and the environment or whatever thirteen-year-olds are about. This shouldn’t be her life.

I shouldn’t be doing this.

Luci turns and looks up at each one of us. “I just want to say thanks. If we don’t make it-”

“Don’t say that,” interrupts Elias.

“Why not? Come on, Tío, I’m not stupid. This is crazy. And deadly. It’s crazy deadly. And we’re here together, and I want to say… When it started… at school… I thought I’d be alone. I thought, ‘I’m going to die alone.’ My friends, Mom, Papa, Liam… I think maybe… maybe they’re all dead.”

“Luci.”

“No, stop. I’m not making some big speech so you’ll feel sorry for me. Or so we can all cry or whatever. I’m just saying, everyone’s maybe dead, and maybe we’ll be dead soon too, but at least I’m not alone. And I hope that if I make it, I hope I’m not alone then too. That’s it. That’s all I have to say.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

When she looks up at us again, her eyes are clear, jaw set.

I wait for Elias to stumble into another well-meaning protest, but instead, he simply nods.

Ron raises his hand. “Do I have to make a speech?”

“No,” Elias says. To the point, as always.

“Okay then,” I say. “Ron, you’re up.”

“But he said I don’t-”

“The portal. Go activate the portal.”

“Ohhh, gotcha. Yeah, rock on.” He does a couple of quick jumps and shakes out his broad shoulders. With a loud exhale, he grabs the amp again and hauls it onto the disc.

It takes a moment to start. Ron saunters to the center and sets down the amp. He drums his fingers on the body of his bass, eyes on the sky.

Then, a white-blue ring of light bursts from the portal, its glow bright even in the blaring sun. The deep, resonate hum grows as the floor begins to tremble. It’s like thunder beneath our feet: a faint, unsettled rumble that builds and builds until the entire terrace visibly quakes.

It stops. The light dims. The hum quiets. And somewhere below, a monster rises.

Quest Updated! ONWARD

You have now activated the portal station. Remain on the portal for :60 to teleport.

Objectives:

- Find the portal station: Complete

- Activate the portal station: Complete

- Survive activation: In Progress

- (Optional) Kill the Flying Piranha Matriarch

A countdown flashes: 00:59.

I look toward the north, waiting for those colossal wings to emerge from the streets.

It’s the most painful two seconds of my life. I wish I hadn’t had the entire stairwell to contemplate death. Maybe if I’d just bolted straight from our power level sesh to the boss fight, I’d be so juiced on adrenaline, I wouldn't care about consequences. Instead I’m standing, waiting, thinking, hurting. Cold fear squeezes the air from my lungs. I try to breathe, but every inhalation is too short, too little. I grasp my machete so tight that my hand aches.

I shouldn't be doing this.

I can’t imagine how Ron feels. He’s the target. The bait. Elias has one foot on the portal, ready to pounce. To think, this morning he was sorting some rich guy’s books. From financial transactions to axe-wielding. What a life.

00:58

00:57

And then it happens. Before I see her, I sense her. The air pulses, steady gusts of wind rippling across the terrace. Then the sound, the rhythmic beat of leathered wings strumming the air. Then her presence, that stifling feeling when you know someone is watching.

The world closes in around me as she appears.

She’s here.

She moves fast. One moment, the peaks of her wings blink over the wall. The next, she’s above us, casting the terrace in shadow. Her wings are enormous, over twenty-five feet of wrinkled membrane stretched thin over rigid bone. The oily scaled flesh of her body undulates with every beat. It’s disgusting. She smells foul, like trash rotting in the heat. And she’s massive. The actual meat of her, the fish, is the size of a damned grizzly, her talons long enough to impale two people at once.

She hasn’t opened that protruding jaw of hers yet. I don’t think I’m ready to see it. It’s taking every ounce of my will to stand my ground.

I focus, examining the creature.

💀 Flying Piranha Matriarch (Lv 10)

It’s the same as before. For a boss, it’s rather unceremonial. I was really, really hoping for a health bar. At least something to tell us if we’re winning.

Her pupils sway inside red orbs the size of my hand. She twists her head, one eye doing god knows what, the other pinned on Ron.

Then she swoops in, her raptorial talons hooked and ready.

Poor Ron. I can see the jitter in his shoulders, the fear in his eyes. Still, he waits. He waits until the last second. Then his shaky fingers pluck the guitar.

The speaker explodes with a deafening, boomy note. As my ears ring, I hold my breath. We have no idea if loud noises will affect the matriarch the way it affects her brood. And we have no idea what harm she can inflict if it doesn’t.

Thankfully, we don’t have to find out. Not yet. She pulls up with a flap of her wings, a gale billowing around her.

It’s just like we planned. She stops. Ron spins clear. And Elias charges in.

He lunges onto the portal, carrying the axe with him in a whirlwind of motion. The blade sings through the air. It strikes.

I thought he’d aim for the head, that he’d try to land a solid shot before it all goes to hell. But he’s smarter than that. So smart I could kiss him.

I’ve never seen such beauty. Such grace. He’s not like Ron. Not just a hulk of brute force and wild hope. He’s as deft as he is strong. In a single swing, he slices clean through both of her twiggy legs. Black blood sprays as her clawed feet clatter to the floor. Just like that, no more talons.

I can't believe it. How did I not think of that? Without her talons, we can win this. We might actually win this. Now all she’s got is her teeth.

Her teeth and her wings. Beyond flight, I hadn’t considered her wings a threat. But she’s furious. And in her fury, she contorts her body. She’s nearly vertical, her wings whipping frenetically across the platform. She smacks the amp. It bursts into pieces, ripping the cable from Ron’s guitar.

Elias dodges off the portal, but Ron isn’t fast enough. Her right wing whacks him in a wide backhand. It’s like his two-hundred pounds are nothing but a fly. For a second, I can’t tell where he went. Then he smashes into the wall behind me and crumples to the floor, unconscious.

The timer resets: 00:60

“No!” Luci runs to his side.

Dammit.

Ron’s not getting back into the action anytime soon, Elias is on the ground, and I can’t get onto the portal while the monster is still writhing like a harpy. I glance at the molotovs. It isn’t time. Not unless I want to burn Elias alive.

The matriarch rears her head and lets out an ear-splitting screech. Her eyes roll around until one of them lands on Elias. The rhythm of her wings steadies as her jaw yawns open.

Now.

I leap onto the portal. The white-blue ring flares, nearly blinding me. I’d completely forgotten about it. For a second, all I can see are rings bursting bright with every blink. But the bitch doesn’t see me. Fist clenched around my machete, I cut into the dance.

00:59

Unlike Elias, I don’t have a plan. While I’d love to chop off her wings,that’ll take more hits than I can muster, and I can’t imagine how many holes I’d have to poke through that skin before it takes effect. I don’t know if I have enough strength to pierce her skull. But it’s possible I’ve got the speed.

I’m stupid fast. Faster than my brain can process. So again, I let my body carry me.

I’m in the air, machete overhead. At the peak, I execute two quick thrusts, right to the head. I feel the blade sink several inches deep, then stop short as the point pokes her skull.

Dink dink. It’s like trying to hammer a nail through steel. At best, I leave a pair of pinhole-sized dents.

A set of notifications appear. I brush quickly through the words, searching for something that resembles hope.

1.

Title(s) Earned:

Bullet Biter: Damage an elite with a melee weapon.

Reward: Melee Weapon Handling +1

Feckless: Allow a lower level party member to take initiative against an elite.

Reward: Cowardice +1

Reckless: Damage an enemy at least five levels higher than you.

Reward: (1) Clothing Voucher

2.

New Skill Unlocked!

Cowardice

You can now cower, hide, and retreat from combat. Improve this skill to lessen your profile, allowing more practiced fighters to take the lead.

[Bonus Proficiency: Resolve]

3.

Skill Proficiencies Increased:

Melee Weapon Handling 4

First off, how is cowardice a skill? Secondly, how can it insult me for both not attacking a high-level enemy and then also for attacking a high-level enemy? Bunch of assholes, these guys.

I swipe away the text. As I land, the machete carves a line down the matriarch’s flesh. Murky black blood weeps from the wound as I rip out the blade. At least I did some damage.

She hardly reacts. She quivers, those awful oily scales rippling across her body, then continues her attack on Elias.

You know how I said she’s the size of a grizzly bear? She doesn’t have the head of a grizzly bear. Like a fish, her head is pretty much just an extension of her body. And she’s a monster, so of course her jaw unhinges like a snake. The resulting maw is abominably large. A toddler could stand upright in there. And those teeth. Hundreds and hundreds of nightmarish epidural-sized needles stacked maybe three, four rows deep.

I don’t care what Elias’ fortitude is. He may as well be a pincushion. And he only just hit the floor. There’s no way he can roll away in time.

Luci’s gun pops, and the matriarch's eye explodes. The monster recoils, her jaw snapping shut, as she headbutts the ground.

Another threat I didn’t account for: her body.

Elias throws up a hand in reflex as the full weight of her crashes down on top of him. A split second later, her wings carry her up again. Elias groans. I can’t see him, not fully, but I notice his right elbow angling in a way it very much shouldn’t be.

The matriarch whips her body in my direction, too fast for her size. I dodge back, missing the hit by a hair, and swing the machete. It shaves off an inch of flesh. A mini fish filet splats on the floor. The monster doesn’t notice. I’ll have to do it another hundred times for her to care.

00:53

00:52

Eight seconds. That’s all we’ve managed. Eight seconds.

A wing crashes down. I juke, whacking at her with the machete. My blade scrapes against the skin. Another flesh wound. I slice at her wing another couple of times before she lifts from the platform, but the cuts don’t even draw blood. If I could reach her other eye, I would. Either she’s purposefully keeping it out of range or she’s just getting lucky.

Meanwhile, my left arm feels strangely weak. I look to see a gash carved deep into the shoulder, red streaks of blood painted down to the elbow. When did that happen?

I glance at my status.

Health: 16/24

Stamina: 27/36

And only two more seconds have passed on the clock.

This isn’t working. I’ll either have to duck and dodge for another fifty seconds or sushi chef my way to victory, neither of which is a great option. I don’t think I can make it. One miss, and I’ll be dead on the floor. Maybe Elias can get in a couple one-handed hits. Maybe Luci can get another few shots off. Maybe Ron will wake up.

Or maybe, only one of us will make it out alive.