The cold wind whipped across the rooftop as August, Jude, and Cara breathed heavily, their muscles aching from the stress of the fight. Cara had collapsed to the ground after they’d pulled her away from the undead creature, her breathing ragged and her body trembling. The group had narrowly escaped death, and while they had fought off the immediate threat, the sound of distant groans and snarls signaled that the nightmare wasn’t over.

"Are you okay?" August asked, kneeling beside Cara. He was breathing heavily, his hands still clutching the knife he’d used to save her.

Cara looked up at him, her expression one of gratitude, mixed with a hint of disbelief. “I… I thought I was done for,” she whispered, rubbing her leg where the zombie had grabbed her. “Thank you.”

Jude, still limping from his earlier injury, watched the scene unfold. He was looking at the horde’s direction, trying to assess their next move. The danger wasn’t gone. The rooftop was no longer a haven. They were surrounded, and they couldn’t afford to stay too long.

“We’re not out of this yet,” Jude muttered, his voice tight. “We need to move. Now.”

August nodded, helping Cara to her feet. “Jude’s right. We can’t stay here. It’s only a matter of time before more of them find us.”

Cara winced as she stood up, clearly in pain, but she didn’t say anything, forcing herself to stay on her feet. The woman had grit. She’d survived the initial outbreak and somehow managed to survive on her own for who knew how long. She was tough, and in a world like this, toughness was necessary.

The group quickly moved to the edge of the rooftop, scanning the surrounding streets below. They could see the streets were crawling with zombies—dozens of them, maybe hundreds, roaming aimlessly in search of any living prey. The city had become their hunting ground.

“Where do we go from here?” Jude asked, his voice low as he glanced around. “We can’t stay up here. We’ll be cornered eventually.”

“We’ll head for the next building,” August said, his eyes narrowing as he searched the nearby rooftops for an escape route. “There’s an alleyway we can cross. From there, we can get to ground level and try to find shelter.”

Cara nodded in agreement, but there was something else in her eyes—a glimmer of something else. She was wary, but not because of August or Jude. It was the world around them. In this post-apocalyptic landscape, every new person was both an ally and a potential threat.

As they began to make their way toward the edge, something strange happened. The system, which had been eerily silent for the past few minutes, suddenly buzzed in August’s mind. He paused, his hand still on the rooftop’s edge, and stared into the air, surprised.

A translucent blue interface materialized before him, glowing faintly in the dim light. The system was about to speak.

“System Update: Party Mode Activated,” it said, its mechanical voice as cold as ever. “New features unlocked.”

August blinked, processing the information. Party Mode? What did that mean?

“Party Mode?” Jude muttered, clearly confused by the sudden change in the system’s behavior.

A new window appeared in August’s vision, and the words “Party” and “XP Sharing” flashed in bright letters. There were additional options too—shared health, shared inventory, and a few other things that August didn’t quite understand yet. But one thing was clear: The system was treating them like a team now, not just a group of individual survivors.

A new feature had just been unlocked, and for the first time in the chaos of the outbreak, it felt like they were becoming more than just strangers trapped in a nightmare. They were a team now—at least, that was what the system suggested.

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“System Update: Party established. All members can now share experience points (XP) and abilities. All members can also share certain inventory items. Health regeneration is improved with party formation.”

“What the hell is this?” Jude asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

“Looks like we’ve just been turned into a party,” August said, his voice a little more cautious than usual. “We get XP, health boosts, and all sorts of stuff as long as we stick together.”

He turned to Cara. “You’re part of the team now too.”

Cara looked at them both, uncertainty in her eyes. But despite that, she gave a hesitant nod. “I’m not sure what any of this means, but I’ll take it. I’m not going to survive out here alone.”

Jude gave a sarcastic laugh. “Guess we’re all stuck with each other now.” He sounded amused, but August could see the apprehension lurking just beneath the surface. Jude had always been a loner and this forced alliance with strangers—no matter how necessary—was something that weighed on him.

August opened his inventory screen and found that it had changed. Now, there were three character names listed: August, Jude, and Cara. He could see their health, experience points, and a few other details about each person. He also had access to the shared inventory, which was a bit of a surprise—some items that had been previously inaccessible were now open to everyone.

August didn’t want to get bogged down with the details right now, though. The world outside wasn’t getting any safer, and every second they wasted could mean another horde closing in on them.

“What now?” Cara asked, looking up at August as if she trusted him to have the answers.

“We get out of here, find a place to lay low, and figure out our next move,” August said, his tone practical. He gestured for them to follow. “Stay close, and watch each other’s backs.”

Jude moved to follow, but as they began to move, another window appeared in August’s HUD. It was another mission notification.

Mission: Reach the Coliseum.

The text was bold and clear, and the map was updated, showing a route toward a distant location that August hadn’t considered before. The Coliseum? What the hell was that supposed to mean? And why was the system sending them there?

"Looks like we have a new mission," August muttered, looking at the map as it guided them toward the destination. "The Coliseum. Whatever that is, it’s where we need to go."

Jude grunted in disbelief. “A Coliseum? Are we supposed to just follow some random direction given by a machine? Seems like a death sentence to me.”

“We don’t have much of a choice, do we?” August shot back, looking over at Cara. “We’re already in this together.”

Cara bit her lip, clearly conflicted. “The Coliseum… that’s where a lot of the survivors have been gathering, right? I’ve heard rumors about it.”

“Rumors?” Jude asked, his skepticism evident. "You mean like some safe haven? Or more like another trap?"

“I’m not sure," Cara said, voice quiet. “But people have said it’s a place where survivors are being taken… where they’re being protected. It could be a real chance at survival.”

August studied her for a moment. “That’s the first good news we’ve heard in a while.”

Jude snorted. "I’m not holding my breath."

August ignored him, tapping a few more buttons on his HUD. The route to the Coliseum was displayed clearly on the map, but he knew that getting there wouldn’t be easy. There was a long way to go, and the horde that had been following them earlier was still out there.

“No time like the present,” August said, turning toward the alley where the path to the next building was. “We head for the Coliseum. Together.”

Jude didn’t argue. They both knew that if they didn’t act now, they’d be walking right into a bigger trap. The horde was still out there, and staying in one place too long was a death sentence.

As they moved through the shadows of the city, August felt a weight lift off his shoulders—just slightly. They were a team now, a unit. The system’s update had bonded them in a way he hadn’t expected. It wasn’t perfect, but they were working together now. For the first time since the outbreak, August felt like there might be a sliver of hope left.

The journey ahead was unclear, but at least they weren’t alone anymore. And for August, that was enough for now.

As they rounded the corner and prepared to head down the alley, August’s HUD flashed again—a warning this time. Incoming Threat: Massive Horde Detected. The ground began to rumble beneath their feet as the unmistakable growls of dozens, if not hundreds, of zombies echoed in the distance.

The mission to the Coliseum had just gotten a whole lot more dangerous.