Nigel scanned the dilapidated apartment for anything they could use to defend themselves. Their ammo supply was limited and New York had become a lawless wasteland. He wasn’t built for this, but he knew that his companions’ skills were up to the task. They were wet, hungry, and exhausted. They had gotten little sleep the night before, and this day was already taking its toll.

Think, Nige! Your friends are counting on you. Show a little backbone.

“We’re not alone,” Nigel whispered, his voice barely audible.

Blanka and Vedrana stepped up beside him, their eyes scanning the darkness.

“We need to fortify,” Blanka said.

Nigel thought for a moment, his mind working furiously. He knew that they were in a perilous situation. They were being hunted, and there was no place where they could feel truly safe.

“Over there,” Nigel said, pointing to an open area. “We’ll have to make sure that we’re prepared for anything.”

The three of them set to work, gathering materials from around the building. They found planks of wood, rusty nails, and other debris that they could use to fortify the windows and doors. Nigel heard a faint sound outside. He motioned for the others to be quiet as they all strained to listen. They could hear footsteps approaching, and Nigel knew that they needed to be ready.

“Get behind the barricade,” he whispered urgently, motioning to the pile of debris they had gathered.

The three of them quickly got behind the barricade, their hearts racing with anticipation. The footsteps grew louder, and soon they could see a shadowy figure approaching the building. The figure stopped in front of the window, and Nigel could feel his heart pounding in his chest.

An enormous creature festooned with tubes leading to a backpack emerged. Its head was misshapen and bald, and its face resembled a half melted candle. Nigel wondered what journey this being took to get to this state. Was this person a victim of Doc Chop, or a willing participant in the doctor’s vile experiments? The never ending torment was something that Nigel did not want to dwell on–the window shattered, sending shards of glass flying in all directions. Nigel and his companions sprang into action, attacking the creature with what they had on hand. Nigel pointed his gun, aiming for the head like Blanka had taught him, then, as he squeezed the trigger, an elongated arm smacked him. The creature screamed as a bullet grazed the top of its head. The gun went flying below a musty bed. Blanka emptied a clip into the creature. It screamed, then ran toward the window and smashed into the frame, which shattered. Nigel was flung back and landed on his back. An intense wave of pain radiated from his spine to his neck.

“Nigel, stay down,” Blanka said.

The creature pulled itself into the room. Its mouth opened, revealing several rows of serrated teeth. Eva punched the creature in the mouth with her cybernetic hand and pulled its tongue out. The creature flailed and pulled away, screeching. The sound caused Nigel to stiffen as a wave of fear settled into his chest.

A gust of wind blew a shred of curtain that was left over from the attack. In the distance the creature howled in pain.

“We need to keep moving,” Nigel said, his voice low. “We can’t stay here.”

Blanka nodded and helped him to his feet. He winced as a sharp pain shot through his back. As they made their way out of the building, Nigel wondered what other dangers lay ahead.

As they walked through the empty streets, the howling of animals and possibly other enhanced humans penetrated his soul. He couldn’t believe how much the city had changed in a year’s time. He pushed down his anxiety as they passed burned-out buildings, cars, and pyres with human skeletal remains hanging from metal cuffs.

“Slow down, Nigel,” Blanka said.

He looked back to find his female companions hurrying to keep up.

“We have to keep moving,” he said again, his voice determined.

“I agree, but we need to save our energy,” Vedrana said.

He forced himself to slow his pace. His companions were right: they needed to conserve their energy. He let Blanka and Vedrana take the lead, with him in the middle, and Eva taking the rear. As they walked, Nigel’s mind drifted back to the intimate relationships he had with all of them. He knew that they were all fiercely loyal to him, and that they had accepted his unconventional lifestyle. But he couldn’t shake off the feeling of guilt that always lingered in the back of his mind.

As they walked, they came across an abandoned car. Nigel motioned for them to stop, and they approached the car cautiously. It looked like it had been there for years, but it was their best bet for transportation.

“We can use this,” Nigel said, his voice low.

They quickly got to work hotwiring the car. The engine turned over, but it was slow.

The battery is probably on its last legs, he thought.

As it started, Blanka gave it some gas. The car shook, but eventually stabilized. They removed some debris, then piled in. Nigel felt a weight lift from his soul. It was like an elephant had been sitting on his chest. The car sped down a partially blocked street. Blanka had to make a few evasive maneuvers to avoid hitting other cars or piles of human or animal remains. As they drove, Nigel couldn’t help but feel a sense of longing. He wanted nothing more than to be with all three of them at once; to feel their bodies pressed against his. A pang of guilt shot through him, but it was overwhelmed by a stronger feeling of lust. The car screeched to a stop; he had to grab the dash to avoid hitting the windshield. Nigel’s heart raced as he looked around, trying to figure out what had happened. They had come to a makeshift roadblock, with rough-looking men standing guard.

“Get out of the car,” one of the guards growled, his voice menacing.

Nigel and the others exchanged nervous glances, their hands poised over their weapons. They knew that they were in a dangerous situation, and that they had to be ready for anything.

“Who are you?” Nigel asked, his voice steady.

“We’re the Resistance,” the man said, his eyes narrowing. “And we know who you are, Nigel Watson.”

Nigel’s blood ran cold as he heard the man’s words. They had been found out, and they were in grave danger.

“What do you want from us?” Nigel asked, his voice low.

“Give us your weapons.”

Several men opened the doors of the vehicle and snatched the weapons from his female companions. Eva grabbed one of the guard’s weapons with her cybernetic arm and bent the barrel. Another guard thrusted a rifle into her face and cocked the weapon.

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“We will give you anything, just tell us what you want,” Nigel said.

One of the men dragged Nigel from the car and kicked him repeatedly.

“Stop it,” Blanka said as she punched the man, sending him flying.

Another guard attacked from behind. She backhanded the man. Several more guards closed in.

“Try that again and I will end you all. Now give us the information that we require,” the man said, his tone menacing. “And in case you haven’t noticed, we’re willing to do whatever it takes to get it.”

“What information?” Nigel asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

“That’s not important,” the man said, his eyes gleaming with malice. “What’s important is that you hand it over, and maybe we’ll spare your lives.”

Nigel thought for a moment, his mind racing. He knew that they had to do something, but what?

“Listen,” he said, his voice steady. “We don’t want any trouble. We’ll give you the information you want, but you have to promise to let us go.”

“Fine,” he said finally. “Hand over the information, and we’ll let you go.”

Nigel and the others exchanged nervous glances as they reached for their gear. They knew that they had no choice but to hand over the flash drive. He reached into his pocket and produced a silver flash drive and handed it over to the man, who snatched it from Nigel’s hands. Nigel and the others watched as he inserted it into an ancient laptop. He tapped on the trackpad with urgent need. Moments later, he closed the laptop and removed the flash drive.

“Wait, what’s the password?”

“I can tell you, but I would rather tell your leader.”

Blanka poked Nigel, giving him a worried look. They were outnumbered ten to one. Nigel didn’t like his odds.

“Hey, Nate, does the ninja have anything to defeat this?”

“I... don’t know, mate,” a skinny fellow answered.

Nigel studied the men. The man in charge, a burly fellow with arms as large as Nigel’s waist, was intimidating to gaze upon. But the skinny man seemed afraid of the other man.

Hold your ground. You should try to negotiate with the leader.

Nigel took a deep breath and stepped forward. His eyes locked on the man in charge.

“Listen, we don’t want any trouble,” Nigel said, his voice calm. “We’re just trying to survive in this chaos. We can help each other out, but we need to work together.”

The man snorted. “And why should we trust you? You could be working for that maniac doctor for all we know.”

Nigel knew that he had to find a way to convince this man that he was on their side. He took a step closer, his hands held up in a peaceful gesture.

“I’m not working for anyone,” Nigel said, his voice low. “I’m just a man trying to survive. But I know that we can work together to make it through this.”

The man considered this for a moment, his eyes flickering with uncertainty.

“And why should we listen to you? What’s on that flash drive?”

Nigel knew that he had to be careful with his words. He couldn’t reveal too much about the flash drive, but he also had to convince this man that they were on the same side.

“The flash drive has information that could help us all,” Nigel said, his voice steady. “But it’s not something that can be shared lightly. We need to build trust between us first.”

The man’s eyes narrowed as he studied Nigel.

“And how do you suggest we build this trust?” he asked, his tone challenging.

Nigel took a deep breath, trying to think of a way to convince the man.

“We have skills and resources that could be useful to you,” Nigel said, his voice confident. “We’ve survived this long on our own, and we could help you do the same. But we need your help too. We need a safe place to stay, and we need to know that we can count on you to have our backs if things get rough.”

The man studied Nigel for a moment longer, his eyes flickering with doubt. But then, slowly, he nodded.

“All right. Follow me,” he said.

“You’re seriously going to bring him to her?” Nate asked.

“This is above my pay grade. She should decide,” the burly man said.

Nigel nodded, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. They had made it through another dangerous situation, and possibly gained an ally.

As they followed the men toward their enclave, Nigel couldn’t help but feel a sense of excitement. They were finally going to have a safe place to stay. But as they entered the enclave, Nigel’s eyes widened in surprise. The place was unlike anything he had ever seen before, with towering buildings and a sense of order that seemed impossible in this chaotic world.

And then he saw her. A young woman with long, black hair and piercing emerald eyes. She was dressed in a sleek black outfit that hugged her curves in all the right places. Nigel felt his heart skip a beat as he looked at her, unable to tear his gaze away.

She approached them, her eyes locked on Nigel’s. “You look familiar,” she said, her voice cold and commanding.

I know her, but from where?

Nigel cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure. “I’m Nigel,” he said, his voice steady. “And these are my friends.”

The woman flicked her eyes over the group, sizing them up with a critical gaze. “Treeka’s friend?” she asked, her tone challenging.

“Aiko?” Nigel asked.

Nigel gasped as he realized that she was the leader of one of the most powerful enclaves in New York.

“Yes,” he said, his voice low. “I know Treeka. She’s a friend of mine.”

“He had this,” the burly man said, handing the silver flash drive to Aiko.

“I need that,” Nigel said.

She ignored him and put the device into a pocket. Vedrana stepped forward. “I challenge you to a duel, for the flash drive.”

The guards laughed.

Aiko put a hand up, silencing her crew. “Okay, blades only.”

Moments later a small man brought two swords that looked identical. “Our guest will choose her weapon first.”

Vedrana picked up the sword closest to her and checked the balance. She put it back, then after a brief moment, nodded to her opponent. Aiko picked the remaining weapon, then held out her free hand. The man gave her a black object, then Aiko slid the hilt away from her. It popped open to reveal a hollow chamber. Aiko inserted the black object and checked its balance. She bowed to Vedrana. Nigel noticed that her eyes never left her opponent. Moments later, Nigel watched two young but capable female assassins exchange blows. The distinctive ring of metal echoed across the encampment as the two fought. Soon a crowd gathered around, cheering when Aiko scratched Vedrana’s flawless white skin.

“It isn’t too late to give up and become my prisoner,” Aiko said.

“Never!”

Nigel remembered that Aiko was a skilled fighter, training since she was old enough to hold a sword. But Vedrana was trained by Dahlia, the Black Heart herself. Aiko dodged several of Vedrana’s thrusts. He noticed that the young ninja’s footwork was flawless. Vedrana was getting fatigued, but she showed no signs of giving up. Aiko’s fluid motion seemed like a choreographed dance to Nigel. She only moved when absolutely necessary, and it was paying off. She tripped Vedrana; the female assassin fell to the ground hard. She spun to try to regain her footing, but it was too late. The tip of Aiko’s sword rested on Vedrana’s throat.

“Do you yield?”

The red-headed assassin was sweating, but she showed no signs of yielding.

“Enough, this is pointless. You can keep the drive,” Nigel said.

Aiko helped Vedrana to her feet.

“You fight with honor, and you are welcome to stay. You all are. But you’ll have to earn your keep. You can start by telling me what’s on this.”

Nigel nodded, feeling a sense of relief wash over him.

“It contains information that the Cabal and another group called Strahinja Vraza desperately want.”

Aiko’s eyes widened.

“Soon we will meet. For now, you and your companions will take shelter in there,” Aiko pointed to a building that looked like it was from a war-torn country.

A lump caught in Nigel’s throat as he examined the structure. Two of its walls were missing, and Nigel noticed several groups living on various floors.

“We’ve stayed in worse places. Come on, let’s find a place to hole up for the night,” Blanka said.

Nigel and his deadly escorts headed toward the building. He didn’t want to risk getting entrenched here for any longer than necessary. He was eager to take the fight to Doc Chop. The problem was, he didn’t know where to start looking. He rummaged through his pack, removed his portable VR headset, and checked the neural link.

“What is that?” Eva asked.

“It’s an enhanced version of the virtual reality headset that’s used within the Colossal Machine.”

“What’s that?” Vedrana asked.

He realized that the concept of jacking into a simulation was a foreign concept to his female companions. They were so used to the physical world, not the virtual one.

This is probably the last network still running in New York. I have to try to reach her!

“This headgear will help me communicate with the outside world. I don’t have time to explain all the intricacies, but according to my scanner, there are several entry nodes for the game. It’s the only means of communicating with anyone.”

Blanka gave him a worried look. “Be careful, Nigel. You don’t want to scramble your brains.”

Nigel found a corner with a king-sized mattress, then lay down and put on his headset.

I can’t believe the servers powering the game are still functioning.

Three doors materialized before him. Each had a unique color. The leftmost door was yellow, the middle was a ruddy bloodstained red, and the right was a chipped green door. His interface blinked rapidly. The last thing he heard before turning the knob of the red door was,

Danger!