“Are you ready?” Khael asked, his tone steady.
“Was there ever a time when I wasn’t?” Finn replied with a smirk.
“Just shut up,”
They stood in silence, one hand tucked behind their backs. Khael’s face was set in a mask of stone-cold seriousness, his eyes sharp and focused while Finn smirked, his posture far more casual. The air was thick with tension as their eyes met,. Suddenly, their hands shot forward in sync.
“Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!”
Finn’s fist was clenched in a solid rock, while Khael’s fingers were split in a scissor. Khael’s face dropped the moment he saw he’d lost.
“Man, you suck,” Finn sighed. “That was the 87th time you lost.”
“You seriously remember what happened years ago?”
“Of course. Not just this, you lost 542 times in coin toss, 271 times in two truths and a lie, 58 times in 20 questions, 35 times in staring contest, 2731 times in–”
“Okay stop! We have work to do.” Khael began to step away. “Don’t throw me off the cliff,”
“Heh, Trust me!”
The moment Finn gave the signal, Khael dashed toward him. Just as Khael reached him, Finn braced, locked his hands under Khael’s boot, and thrust him up with a powerful push. Khael felt the rush of air against his face. The ground shrank below as he ascended higher than he could ever jump on his own.
For a split second, everything was still, and he took in the sight from above. Below him lay the same barren wasteland down there, dead silent and strewn with scattered corpses. Then, just as gravity started to pull him down, something shifted at the edge of his vision. A dark figure moved slowly across the field, almost blending with the dark soil.
Marking the spot in his mind, Khael braced himself for the descent.
Thud.
Finn caught him effortlessly.
“What the—” Khael froze, momentarily disoriented.
“Are you hurt?” Finn asked, his tone unusually soft.
“PUT ME DOWN!”
With a shrug, Finn let him go, and Khael hit the ground with a rough thump. Khael groaned as he pushed himself up, brushing the dirt off his arms and shoulders with quick, irritated motions.
“See anything?” Finn asked.
Khael nodded. “Over there,”
Finn’s eyes narrowed as he glanced in the direction Khael pointed.
“Well, Let’s go and say hello”
They kept their steps light, eyes scanning every inch of the field as they moved closer to where Khael had seen the figure. Every misplaced rock or broken weapon seemed like it might spring to life at any second. The eerie quiet of the place amplified each crack of dried soil underfoot, until even the smallest sound felt deafening.
When they were close enough to the spot Khael had marked, he raised a hand to signal Finn, who halted instantly. Behind a dead tree log, a faint shape slithered just out of clear view. The silhouette was low to the ground, creeping slowly. Khael's grip tightened around the hilt of his knife, and his stance shifted, becoming more alert. Finn leaned in slightly, squinting to get a better look.
“See that?” Khael whispered, barely loud enough for Finn to hear.
“Yeah,” Finn whispered back. “It looks…nothing special.”
Suddenly, the figure stopped moving. It seemed to sense them as it lifted its head slightly.
In a split second, both of them sprang into action. Finn drew his gun, aiming with steady hands, while Khael’s knife was already in his grip. He was the first to move, charging forward with a calculated pace. With a powerful thrust, he drove the knife deep into the creature’s side. Without a moment's pause, he twisted the knife and pulled it out with a swift motion. The creature let out a low, agonizing growl. Not giving it a chance to recover, Khael followed up with a quick slash, slicing through its skin again. Before it could react, it fell silent. Blood spilled from the wound, soaking the ground. It went silent, its movements stopping altogether as it crumpled to the ground.
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They both stood over the lifeless form.
“Is that it?” Finn asked.
The creature looked like a deformed human with skin as black as night. Finn kicked its body lightly, and it didn’t budge.
“I didn’t even get to fight!” Finn grumbled. “Even a kid could’ve taken that thing down”
“You're the one who wanted to investigate,” Khael shot back, raising an eyebrow.
“It sounded a bit scary from a distance!” Finn insisted, kicking the body again—this time with more force. The creature rolled a few feet away, but still lay motionless.
“Woah, you were scared? Looks like someone will sleep with the lights on today–”
“I wasn't scared! I was just curious,” Finn replied, crossing his arms and striking an awkward pose to emphasize his point.
“Sure, buddy," Khael teased back. He felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him, stretching his back and trying to shake off the weariness. “Let’s head back. I’m feeling pretty tired now.”
“Can’t believe it only took a few seconds. I was hoping for a boss fight or something.”
Khael gave him a dry look. “Just be happy about that. Don’t ask for too much.”
“Don't forget about my meal.”
“Yeah, yeah, just shut up already—”
G͢͠R̴͘͞A͡H̴H͢H̢H͛H͡H̢H͜H͢H̛H͠H͘H͡H͛H͜H̡H͠H͢H̛H͡H͡H̸H͠H͢H̛H͡H͡H̸
A shrill, high-pitched scream tore through the air, sharp enough to make eardrums feel on the verge of breaking, eerie enough to leave a lasting scar on anyone’s memory. The sound was more than loud—it was unnatural, hollow, and twisted.
Khael’s blood froze. His eyes were wide, locked open in shock. Every muscle felt bound, seized by something unseen. For one terrifying moment, he couldn’t see, couldn’t breathe; it was as if the world had vanished around him. Then, with a jolt, he snapped back to himself.
Slowly, he turned to Finn, who stood equally frozen, completely still. Finn’s face mirrored his own—a blend of shock and uncertainty. They held each other's gaze in silence. Then, they looked over their shoulder.
A shadowy figure stood at a distance, tall and menacing. The figure's form was vaguely humanoid, yet it lacked any defining features—no face, no limbs that could be clearly seen, just an ever-moving silhouette that seemed to absorb the light rather than reflect it.
Every instinct in Khael's body screamed for him to flee. He couldn’t tell whether the shadowy figure before them was truly dangerous or simply a manifestation of bloodlust meant to intimidate them. Khael’s heart raced as he weighed his options, caught between fight or flight.
“So, that wasn’t the final boss, huh?” Finn’s voice cut through the thick atmosphere, snapping Khael back to reality. Finn seemed oddly unfazed, the shock on his face fading into a confident smirk, as if he relished the surrounding chaos.
“I was getting bored anywa—” before he could finish, something leapt at him with incredible speed. The attack caused the ground to tremor, and a cloud of dust exploded from the impact, completely blocking Khael's view.
Bang! Bang!
Bursts of gunfire pierced the turmoil, lighting the dust flying about him. Khael pushed forward, his hand swiping through the air in a futile attempt to clear the thick haze. He started to lose track as the distorted echoes of gunfire and shouts confused his senses.
When the dust began to settle, shapes gradually emerged from the murk. Khael’s eyes narrowed, scanning the dim outlines until they focused on a familiar figure. A few steps ahead, Finn maintained an unsteady stance and clutched his gun as if it were the only thing keeping him alive in the chaos. Finn nodded firmly as their gazes locked. As their eyes met, Finn gave a tight nod.
“Stay alert! It’s still here somewhere,” he warned.
“What happened?”
Finn gave a slight shake of his head. “It’s strong.”
Khael was about to ask a question, but his instincts roared at him once more. His body moved before his mind could catch up. He raised his arm and leaned back as a dark hand cut through the air, just missing his face. He felt a chill pass through him as it went with a quick whoosh.
He quickly reached out and grabbed the creature's forearm. He gritted his teeth and twisted with everything he had, but it was like trying to bend a steel bar—the arm barely shifted under his grip. The sheer power behind it was unlike anything he’d faced before.
Then, out of the corner of his eye, Khael saw the creature’s other arm rising, aimed right for his head.
Bang!
Finn’s shot rang out, and the creature’s arm recoiled back just in time, barely missing the intended spot. Khael took his chance. He thrust his knee into the creature’s belly with all his force, the impact making it grunt in pain. Without waiting, he followed up with a powerful, bone-crushing upward strike to the creature’s jaw. The force sent its head snapping back, and for a moment, it staggered, disoriented.
After receiving such hits, a typical human would have passed outs, but the creature didn’t falter. It moved as if each part of its body operated on its own. When Khael's strike twisted its head back, the creature's hand shot forward like a whip, aiming straight for his chest.
Khael hadn’t thought it was possible, but the blow landed hard against his ribs, sending a shock of pain through his body. Finn was right—it was strong, unbelievably strong. The impact reverberated through him, each organ slamming into his spine, and for a split second, his vision blurred. He staggered back, breathless, fighting to stay on his feet. His ribs felt like they had been crushed under the weight of a boulder, and the air in his lungs was forced out in a painful gasp.
Khael was hurled backward, his body crashing to the ground with a sickening thud. He rolled several feet, the earth scraping against his skin, before he finally came to a stop. He felt himself slip out of consciousness for a heartbeat but forced his body upright. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, a metallic taste that only made the nausea worse.
Wham!
A vicious kick struck his side, slamming right on top of the fractured ribs, sending him flying through the air. He hit the ground hard and rolled another few feet.
He stayed down. His vision swam, blurred by the shock and the blood filling his mouth—thick, metallic, and unmistakably his. Gritting his teeth, he forced his hands into fists, willing his body to move. His nerves screamed in protest, but he ignored them, pushing himself upright. Pain howled through his chest, but he shoved it down, just like he’d shoved aside every other problem in his life.
A deeper, sharper ache cut through everything else. Khael pulled back his collar, the pressure making him wince. There, beneath the torn fabric, the jagged edge of bone had torn through his skin, raw and exposed, blood leaking from the wound.
“That’s not good…”