There’s no message as I grab the handle.

Is that a good or a bad thing?

“Something wrong?” Virgil asks.

“No.” I pull the door open. “You guys say you know how this works. What are we walking into?” I step into a … restaurant? Tables are broken and thrown all over the place, and the chairs are no better. The hard plastic somehow shattered like the glass doors, and metal legs bent as if they’d been softened first..

“This place is a mess,” Jim says. “You think we can raid the lab’s fridges?”

I turn. “Lab? Why are you really coming?”

“The food labs,” Virgil says, pointing to the opposite, partially destroyed, wall, “are on the other side. Students prep the food for the hall. Over there.” He points to the left. “Is the bulk kitchen.”

“I doubt anything will have survived without power,” Janice says.

“We can still check,” Jim insists. “The gardens aren’t producing anywhere enough for the people that need food.”

“It’s going to last until after we’ve dealt with whatever’s in here,” I say. “Now. Do you, or don’t you, know how this works?”

“If this was in a game,” Walter says while Virgil looks annoyed at me for questioning them. “Then this would be an instance. It’s meant to let many teams go in without getting in each other’s way.” He raises a hand to stop Janice, who seems ready to say something. “I don’t think Chuck’s interested in all the nuanced ways games try to play with the concept. This isn’t a game, but I think all it would mean for us is that we might run into another group trying to clear the building.”

“Which isn’t going to happen,” Virgil says, “since no one’s come to help us.”

“Mayor Barlet said he’d send people as soon as he had them,” Jim replies.

“I’m starting to question his intent,” Janice says, “seeing as it’s Chuck who’s here on behalf of Papinian, what, hours after you said you found her?”

“It wasn’t me, and it was minutes. How about monsters? You said they’re high level. What does that mean?”

Virgil looks at Walter and shrugs. I’m questioning their intent when he says. “You started with the explanations. Might as well continue.”

“Okay, then, again, if this was a game? The boss would be on the fourth floor and the encounters would be ever more difficult as we get closer. Then, there would be some game mechanic we’d have to figure out to defeat it. There’s no way to know how much of that applies, since while the background mechanics are definitely MMO based, there’s also a lot of stuff that’s still RL based.”

“That’s real life, for the older ones among us,” Jim says, grinning. It falters as I glare at him. Not bothering being nice is doing wonders for maintaining my willpower.

“Bottom line,” Virgil says, “is that we shouldn’t take anything for granted. So we should clear every floor in case the boss isn’t on the top floor.”

“Aren’t you taking for granted there is a boss?” Janice points out.

I head for the doors on the right.

On the other side, I’m confronted by—I have my bar in hand, swinging at one of them— something bipedal, no more than a meter and a half in height. And there are six of them. The one I hit staggers, the rest jumps me. I hit another one, then my arm is immobilized, I kick one away, and another jumps on my leg. They claw at me and do minor damage through my armor, but I can’t fight back.

With a scream I shrug the one holding my arm off, and land a blow. It downs one, who doesn’t get up, then my arm is caught again and teeth sink in.

Trying to free myself gives me the time to see the one approaching. Its skin is gray, it’s without genitals, and the eyes are large, shot with red as it looks at me with hatred. Then it staggers to the side as arrows hit it one after the other.

The one on my arm goes flying, and Virgil slams the end of his club down on the one holding one of my legs. It does no visible damage, but it lets go and I kick it away.

I shoulder the orc aside and bring my bar down on the monster that was sneaking behind him. I only graze it. Then, somehow, Jim’s behind it, stabbing a short sword in its back. It doesn’t have the effect he’s hoping for, and he yelps in surprise when the monster grabs him and slams him onto the floor.

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The distraction lets me get in another hit, forcing it away from the thief, and Virgil takes over the offensive.

I dismiss my bar, grab the monster holding my other leg, and throw it as far as I can. Then my bar is back in hand and I slam it down on another monster’s head, cracking it open.

Virgil screams in pain and I’m annoyed at his weakness. I shove that aside at the cost of some willpower and attack the monsters in the process of clawing him. Two solid hits and it’s not moving anymore.

Virgil pushes himself to his feet and grabs his club in his off-hand, the other one’s limp at his side, bleeding heavily.

“Guys!” Malcolm yells. Three of the monsters are coming at him as he pulls a sword. His quiver’s empty.

I run at them with an angry scream, pulling the attention of two toward me. I spend more time blocking and parrying, but the few hits I land leave their marks. Out of the corner of my eye, Virgil’s helping Walter, but they aren’t winning. I have no idea where Jim or Janice is and no time to look around for them. As another monster joins the two fighting me.

I discover it’s stronger as I down one and take a punch that sends me off my feet and costs me a fifth of my health. As I stand, I see Janice, her hands glowing over Jim. Then I’m glaring at the monster.

It’s like the others, but with more muscles. I advance and swing the instant I’m close enough. It takes the hit without visible reaction. I hit it again and again. I even land one between its legs, and that doesn’t cause a reaction either.

It punched me, and another fifth of my health vanishes, but I stay on my feet. I block the overhead slam, and that sends me down to a knee. I roll away as it raises its fist for another hit, and it kicks me before I’m on my feet. I’m down to my last fifth as I get to my feet.

I am not going down to that—

An arrow appears in the side of its head. With half the shaft poking out of where an ear would go. It stands there, looking surprised, then drops.

“Chuck,” Virgil croaks. He’s holding back the monster, which allowed Walter to shoot, but it’s costing him. I go to his help, and with one solid hit, the monster drops.

The orc sags to the floor but is grinning like it’s his birthday. “Update,” he calls.

“Made third level,” Walter says.

“Same,” Jim calls from where he’s still lying.

“I’m still third, but healing Jim raised my spell to level six.”

“I cracked fifth,” Virgil says proudly, then looks at me.

“What?”

“It’s sort of a tradition to say what you gained after a fight.”

“I’m not part of your group.”

“That’s not the point,” Walter says, “it’s so—”

“Leave it,” Virgil says. “Chuck’s right. It’s an us thing. Out of curiosity, what’s your class, berserker or something?”

“Why?”

“The way you just walked out without letting Jim check if it was safe speaks to a class that enjoys fighting.” Janice kneels next to him and her hands start glowing.

I snort. “You were all too busy talking.”

“Considering your level, I thought you’d done a bunch of group fights,” the orc said, “or did you just throw yourself into them mindlessly and hope you’d survive.”

Someone’s got your number there.

“I didn’t throw myself into any of the fights I’ve been in. They happened, and I fought until I won.”

You’re really going with that?

“Berserker,” Jim says, joining us.

“I thought goblins were a race,” Walter says, knelt next to one of the bodies, studying it.

“Those are Goblinoids,” Jim replies, “according to the combat log.”

Janice goes to Walter and repeats the process with her glowing hands. Virgil stands and stretches. He’s covered in blood, and his armor’s a mess, but he’s acting like everything’s fine.

“I lost three arrows,” Walter said. “I was hoping they were going to drop some when they died, but that’s one mechanic that doesn’t seem to be implemented.”

“We had that happen when we were in the dungeon,” I say, remembering a comment from Terry when the zombies left the vitamins behind. That reminds me. I take a vitamin and not as much health as I’d hoped for comes back.

“You’ve been in a dungeon?” Virgil asked excitedly.

Janice is next to me, glowing hand raised, then hesitates. “Are you okay with me touching you? I have to if I’m going to heal you.”

I nod and she heals me. Other than the pain going away and my health bar replenishing, it doesn’t feel like anything.

“I thought this would be one,” I say. “It’s a large building like the Walmart, and there’s an ominousness to it.”

“How do you know it’s not a dungeon?” Jim asks.

“Those don’t usually spawn in settled areas, Walter says.”

“The Walmart had a message pop up when I grabbed the handle.”

“That’s why you paused,” Virgil says. “You were expecting one.”

I nod. “Are you ready to continue?”

“We should clear the floor, starting with the lecture hall and the classrooms there.” The orc hesitates. “Can I make a suggestion about how we should proceed?”

“Sure.”

“Jim stealths the room and tells us what to expect. You and me draw the monsters, Walter shoots them, Jim goes for backstabs, and… Janice, how is that stun blast coming along?”

The elf chuckles. “Calling it a blast is false advertising. I wouldn’t even be willing to call it a stun bolt, it’s more of—”

“Can we get an answer?” I ask, “so I don’t have to stand here listening to all this?”

They look at me, and the one expression I decipher is the hurt on Janice’s face.

Does she deserve—

Not now, mom.

That, I feel bad for doing. My mother’s voice always steers me in a good direction, but right now, I don’t have the time for good. They asked to tag along. So they’re going to have to get with the program.

“I can stun one person or monster,” she answers, “but it costs me nearly a third of my mana. That means you’re going to have to wait until I’ve recharged it before I can heal everyone.”

“How long for you to go from empty to full?” Virgil asks.

She glances at me. “It’ll be faster if I can meditate, but the worst case is a bit over three minutes.” She smiles. “Aether is my main attribute.”

“Then, if Chuck is okay with it, we’ll start clearing the floor.” There’s an edge to Virgil’s tone I don’t even bother trying to decipher.

“I’m fine with it, and we can use your plan for it.” I turn and head in the direction he indicated, ignoring the look he gives me.