Date: 2021-11-10 05:00:00+00:00
Description: The Apocalypse Game has begun, and all of humanity is up for grabs. To the victor go the spoils. My name is Killian Dunn. I'm eighteen, a high school senior, a gamer, and, oh yeah, the Harbinger of the Apocalypse. Not exactly what I had in mind as a career path. Reality took a nosedive when Armageddon came knocking. It brought with it classes, levels, and skills, as well as a horde of Lovecraftian abominations to use them on. I never wanted any of this, but the sick god who orchestrated this whole nightmare has my family. Their lives are forfeit if I refuse to play his game. He left me no choi

Apocalypse Game

The Chessboard War (Book 1)

Grayson Sinclair

Copyright © 2021 Grayson Sinclair

All rights reserved

The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

Dedicated to the LitRPG community, for without you, this book wouldnt exist.

Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Chapter 1- Monday Morning Hell

Chapter 2- Tuesday Blues

Chapter 3- The Mantle

Chapter 4- No Shotguns in the Halls

Chapter 5- Carnival Beasts

Chapter 6- Vicious Pieces

Chapter 7- Grissom City

Chapter 8- Fire and Fury

Chapter 9- Crabfest

Chapter 10- The Charade King

Chapter 11- Fate and Fear

Chapter 12- Fort Alexander

Chapter 13- Mercenaries Wanted

Chapter 14- Digressing and Side Questing

Chapter 15- The Grind

Chapter 16- Depths of Depravity

Chapter 17- Truth and Reconciliation

Chapter 18- Much Bigger Fish

Chapter 19- Assault on Grissom Mall

Chapter 20- Where to Draw the Line?

Chapter 21- A Choice to Make

Chapter 22- Change in Management

Chapter 23- Eastbound and Down

Chapter 24- Midnight Jungle

Chapter 25- Into the Dark

Chapter 26- Overrun

Chapter 27- Yankee Stadium

Chapter 28- The Statue King

Chapter 29- The Archangel of the White

Chapter 30- The Demon Lord of the Black

Chapter 31- Kings in Check

Ending Stats!

Thank you for reading!

Other Books by me!

Chapter 1- Monday Morning Hell

The sharp scent of brimstone woke me. It burned in my nose and clung to the back of my throat with each breath.

I bolted upright in bed, my pounding heart thundering in my chest. My adrenaline spiked, and the rushing blood deafened me. I blinked my eyes open and scanned the darkened room but found nothing out of place. Yet the rotten stench still lingered and set my teeth on edge.

What the hell?

I climbed out of bed and glanced at my window. My dark curtains blocked most of it, but bright light spilled in between the gaps, bathing my room in twilight.

Panic rose in my chest again as I hastily grabbed for my phone.

What time is it? Did I oversleep?

I glanced at my too-bright screen and blinked away tears as they rolled down my cheeks and left salt on my lips.

It was just after three in the morning—the middle of the night.

Which begged the question.

Where the hell is that light coming from?

I climbed back onto my bed and pulled the curtains aside.

Outside my window, the world burned.

Flames rose from the skyline of Grissom City in the distance. Smoke curled from a thousand fires and blackened the sky. In the distance, horrid abominations flew. They flapped their massive, leathery wings as the burning city set the clouds aflame.

My mind failed to understand what I was seeing, and with shaky fingers, I pried the window open.

Only for my room to fill with the music of the damned.

Horrified and tortured screams echoed around me, far away and yet, like they were right next to me all at once. I clamped my hands over my ears to drown out the sounds and stumbled back as a wave of nausea roiled in my stomach.

I tumbled off the bed and rushed to the door, throwing it open.

A city street waited for me, littered with the dead and burning corpses of dozens, if not hundreds.

There was nothing for me to do but stare in abject horror at what I was seeing. For a long moment, I tried and failed to come to terms with the hell in front of me.

This is a nightmare. It has to be.

Please, for the love of all that’s holy, let it be an actual nightmare.

A light chuckle rose above the crackling flames, and movement from the corner of my eye caused me to turn.

There, a figure wreathed in smoke and darkness stood next to a shattered storefront before they strolled toward me. Their shadow stretched far behind them and danced in the flames.

Though they stood right in front of me, all I could make out was their shadow and two fiery points where eyes should be.

They chuckled again, but this time, it was a rolling, sibilant hiss that crawled over my skin like ants and sent goosebumps up my arms. My hair stood on end as the figure’s eyes met mine, and a ghastly grin settled over their mouth.

“She was right,” they said. “You’ll do just fine.” Their eyes burned, drowning out everything else as they held me transfixed. “Rise, my Demon Lord. We have much to do, you and I.”

As they spoke, a jolt of electricity slithered up my spine, and I gasped awake.

My eyes bolted open, and I stifled the gargled scream in my throat as the shrill tones of my alarm blared next to my ear.

I rubbed my eyes and groaned as I rolled over to pound my ringing alarm. The aged machine squealed as I smacked the button, and it stopped its incessant yammering, bathing me in blessed silence.

The last remnants of my dream faded with the dying note of the alarm.

What a strange nightmare. I groaned and yawned as I sat up. What was it about again? A fire. Something about a fire? Maybe.

I can’t remember. Shocking.

I could never remember my dreams.

As I sat up, I leaned over, pawing around my covers for my phone. It wasn’t on the bed, nor the nightstand next to my mortal enemy. I slipped my hand down the space between the wall and the mattress, and my fingers closed around cold metal. I pulled it up and hit the home button.

Nothing. Black screen.

Dammit. I forgot to plug it in before I passed out.

My face stared back from the dead screen. Shaggy, nearly black hair fell in a tangled mess across my face and into my eyes. I desperately needed a trim, and I brushed my hair away. My eyes came into focus. They were the palest blue I’d ever seen on anyone before, and in the sun, the blue seemed to fade into white.

I loved them. They were the one thing that made me stand out to people.

Certainly won’t be my skinny body or pasty skin. Need to hit the weights some more. I rubbed the last of the sleep out of my eyes and yawned. Ugh, I’m so going to be late.

Just as I was about to attempt the monumental task of climbing out of bed to get a shower, my door flew open without a care in the world.

“Hey, get up,” a soft voice said from my doorway.

As always, no matter the hour, Meghan looked perfect. Her school uniform was pristine, not a crease out of place. Her hair, the same shade as mine, was neatly brushed and pulled out of her tanned, heart-shaped face. Hell, even the silver necklace around her throat didn’t have a kink in its chain.

“I am up. Could you knock for once?”

Meghan laughed and hopped on the bed, pinning my legs under her. “You’ll have to take it up with management,” she said with a laugh.

“Dad?”

“Yep.” She beamed. “Breakfast is ready.” She paused and chuckled. “You look like hell. What time did you go to bed?”

“What time is it?”

“Almost eight.”

“Then about four hours ago,” I said, shifting my legs and sitting up as Meghan slid off me.

She narrowed her piercing blue eyes and gave me a playful shove. “You’re gonna collapse one of these days,” she said seriously before smiling. “Anyway, message delivered. And I oh so graciously saved you some hot water. You should get a shower before you’re late for school.”

Then she left, and I was back to my peace and quiet.

Too bad I can’t go back to sleep. I’ve got a test today.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and threw on a wrinkled shirt with the words ‘I’m a people person’ with a picture of Hannibal Lecter on the front. I headed to the bathroom and took a quick shower. Though five minutes in, the water turned to ice.

Really played fast and loose with the word some, didn’t you, Megs?

After getting out and dressed, I brushed my teeth and stared at myself in the mirror. I gave myself a second glance as I tried to pretend that the deep bags under my eyes and sparse five o’clock shadow gave me the rockstar on a bender look.

Before I even started down the stairs, the scent of waffles and bacon hit my nose and set my stomach rumbling.

“Gonna have to settle for a slice of toast in my mouth while I run out of the house screaming, I’m late, today,” I muttered as I hit the steps.

Nearly twenty picture frames hung along the wall as I descended. Eighteen years of family gatherings, vacations, and school pictures. Though nearly half were of Mom and her many award ceremonies.

I stumbled into the kitchen as Dad sipped his coffee, newspaper and marker in hand as he circled at random.

“Morning.” I yawned as I sat across from him.

He looked up for a second, his deep recessed eyes lighting as he ran a hand through his thick and dark head of hair. “And I thought I had a long night. Coffee?”

A mumbled groan of delight slipped from my lips, and he stood and made me a cup. He slid it to me across the worn oak table, spilling a heavy drip down the side of the porcelain. I added two creams and sugar to it and took a large gulp.

Perfection.

“Mom working?” I asked as I stood to grab some bacon.

“Yeah, the lab has her entire department on a tight deadline. She told me not to wait up for her for the next few nights.”

“Which means she won’t be home this afternoon,” I said around a mouthful of bacon and coffee.

He looked up with apologetic eyes and put down his newspaper. “You don’t mind driving Meghan to her game, do you?”

I sighed. “I gue─”

“He’d be delighted to take his wondrous little sister to her soccer game and watch her play,” Meghan said as she came into the dining room and threw her arm around me.

Dad and I looked at each other, and I held my hands up. “I’d be delighted to, apparently.”

Meghan laughed and snagged a slice of bacon from my plate, her eyes sparkling. “Not my fault you haven’t been to one of my games all season.”

“That’s because your team sucks,” I replied.

“Nu-uh, that was last year. Jennette joined this year, and she kicks ass.”

“Language,” Dad said without looking up from his paper. “I’ve got a few interviews early in the afternoon, but I should be back home well before game time.”

His mention of time caused me to glance up at the clock. I had ten minutes to get to class.

“Shit,” I muttered and jumped out of the chair.

It earned me the same disapproving scolding Meghan had gotten, but I was already in the living room by the time it registered. I threw on my windbreaker, snagged my backpack, and was out the door and on the porch, heading to the street.

Mr. Mitchells will skin me alive if I’m late again.

I hit the pavement at a jog, barely dodging an elderly couple walking.

“Sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Wilkens,” I shouted and kept running.

“Don’t break your neck, Killian,” Mrs. Wilkens hollered back.

“If only! Then I wouldn’t have to take my calculus test today!” I said, already turning.

A bracing autumn breeze whipped over my face and neck, and I zipped my jacket tight as I crossed the street. I was thankful I lived so close to campus, but I never relished the dead sprint I had to make almost daily.

Once I rounded the corner from my street, I took a shortcut through the pristine grass of the baseball field and hung a right by the chain-link fence that separated the regular world from higher education.

Grissom High School was like most under-funded schools throughout America.

Under-funded.

It sported a big white sign that held the school’s name in bold, embossed golden letters, but take two steps to the left and the actual school came into view. Rough and chipped brick walls, with a splattering of teenage graffiti and empty beer cans, lent it its rugged charm.

At least the windows weren’t busted out this month.

I darted through the obstacle course of students milling about while trying to dodge the loners smoking E-cigs and the skaters who were busting their faces trying to impress the cheerleaders. We had only a few minutes before the late bell, yet everyone was acting like they had all the time in the world.

Ignoring everyone else, I ran to my blue locker in a sea of blue lockers that rose from the garish orange linoleum flooring that seemed to never end. I grabbed my World History textbook and went to class. I plopped down in my seat a second before the bell rang and watched as, over the next four minutes, every other student meandered in.

Mr. Mitchells gave me a smile over the book he was reading and a withering glare to the rest of the class as they filed in one by one.

Over the next hour, he began where he’d left off last class. West Africa and the Mali Empire. He made learning enjoyable, but I was running on low sleep, and the heat in the room was too much for me to resist.

I passed out midway through class and only woke up when a sharp thwack rapped against my desk. I jumped as if bit by a spider and nearly flung myself out of the chair. A bolt of rich laughter came from the rest of the class as they chuckled at my expense.

Mr. Mitchells stood over me with a battered copy of War of the Worlds rolled up in his hands.

“Killian Dunn, how many times have I warned you about sleeping in class? Next time it happens, I’m marching over to your house at midnight and cutting the power cables. Maybe then you could get a decent night’s sleep!”

“Sorry,” I mumbled, stifling a yawn.

I kept my head up for the rest of class, trying not to let the desire to sleep win out once more.

The rest of the class went by quickly. Afterward, it was Calculus, and my test, which made me want to hang myself, and then I had English. Mrs. Hofstetter was a shrewd hag of a woman and the worst kind of grammar Nazi, but I shared the class with Omar, so it was bearable.

He nudged me while Mrs. Hofstetter went over the themes present in Great Expectations. I glanced up into his brown eyes. “Hey, what level did you get to last night?” he asked in a hushed tone.

“Fifty-seven, but keep your voice down. You know what’ll happen if she catches us talking.”

Omar’s eyes lit up at my number, but he, too, feared the wrath of the hag and turned to face the chalkboard. He picked at his thin, patchy beard and shot me glances every so often, clearly wanting to risk a lecture to talk to me about Oxide Online.

Class ticked by at a languid pace, but after an hour and a century, the bell rang, and it was time for lunch.

Omar followed me as we put our books up and went to the cafeteria to get in line for food. “Dude, you progressed three levels last night?” he asked, a wide grin on his face.

“Not only that, but I also upgraded the walls of our base to sheet metal. Now, anyone who tries to raid us will have a tough time of it.”

“No wonder you look like crap this morning.”

“Hey,” I said, feigning indignation. “Like you’re one to talk. You look like a zombie.”

“First off, that’s zombieist. You should be ashamed of yourself,” he said, laughing.

We both cut up as the line trickled by. I grabbed a stale hamburger and lukewarm fries, while Omar was brave enough to risk the lasagna.

I saved our seat while Omar grabbed our drinks, and we kept up our conversation until the clack of a third plastic tray interrupted us.

“Afternoon, guys.”

“Hey, Sarah. How was Physics?” I asked.

She sighed as she sat down, flicking an errant lock of curly brown hair from her forehead. “It’s Physics. I’m drowning in it.”

“Why did we sign up for advanced placement, anyway? I swear I’m just wasting my time here,” Omar said.

“Because we all bought into the great lie that our parents sold us,” she said. “I swear, I’m one bad day away from saying screw it, dropping out and starting a business where I can sit at home in sweatpants all damn day.”

Sarah’s face scrunched in disgust as she took a bite of her burger. Her upturned green eyes narrowed. “And I’m bringing my own lunch from now on.” She dropped the burger back on her plate and pushed it away, wiping imaginary crumbs from her retro T-shirt.

“Yeah, class is killing me. I barely have enough time to game for eight hours every night,” I said cheekily as I checked my phone before realizing it was still dead. “Either of you have a charger?”

Both shook their heads.

“Damn, but how else will I respond to my millions of followers? This is a tragedy.”

They both choked up and laughed.

“You count us and your sister as millions? Dude, are you sure you should be in Calculus?” Omar fired back.

I fought back a smile and ate my burger with about as much enthusiasm as Sarah.

“Maybe bringing lunch isn’t such a bad idea.”

“You know what is a good idea, though?” Omar asked, his eyes lighting up as he ran his fingers over his small chin. “Old school LAN party this weekend…you know, just with Wi-Fi instead.”

“The cabin?”

“You know it. What say you, Sarah? You in?”

“I’d love to, but I’ve got home─” she began before cracking up. “You bet your ass I’m in.”

We joined her in laughing. Even though I was tired from lack of sleep, cutting up with them gave me a burst of energy, hopefully enough to tackle the rest of the day.

But just as my mood perked up, it was immediately soured by the obnoxious voice of the person I hated most in this world.

“A party? Why wasn’t I invited?” Greg asked as he walked by and placed his arms roughly around Omar's and Sarah’s necks.

Greg was an alpha douche, a walking stereotype of epic proportions. Spiked blond hair with too many piercings in his nose, lips, and mouth. His two hundred and fifty dollar button-up hung loose, showing that he had money but no class.

“Fuck off, Greg,” I said, glaring at him.

He smirked. His movie-star white smile mirrored the malicious glint in his baby blue eyes.

The bell rang through the lunchroom, but none of us moved, which only caused Greg’s smile to deepen.

“Didn’tcha hear the bell?” he said, tapping his Rolex. “Gonna be late.”

The way he had his hands around my friends royally pissed me off, and I couldn’t keep my mouth shut.

“You know, Greg, for all your daddy’s money, and you still couldn’t get into a decent private school.” I whistled. “Life’s gonna be rough for you.”

His face darkened with rage, his fists balled tight enough that it probably hurt, and he let go of my friends.

Which is what I wanted.

Only now I’d aggroed him, which meant I was probably about to get my ass beat.

He stared me down as his fury built before he leapt in between Omar and Sarah, coming right for me. Greg knocked over both of their trays in the process as he vaulted the lunch table. The trays clattered to the floor, splattering their contents over the floor and my shoes.

Oh hell, I just had to open my big mouth.

I glanced around, but there weren’t any teachers in sight, as they preferred to eat away from the plebeian masses, which meant there was no one save the lunch ladies around to help me, and the chances of them stepping in were about as good as them serving edible food.

Meaning I was screwed.

I backed away as Greg came toward me, fists raised.

Yep. Well, I needed to go to the dentist soon anyway.

Greg brought his hand back and swung a wide haymaker. I ducked it, nearly falling to the floor in the process as Greg brought his second fist down.

It caught me in the shoulder and numbed my arm as I tried to push past him, but I snagged my thigh on the side of one of the vinyl seats, and went sideways as my foot slid on Omar’s lasagna.

My balance was weak, but I somehow kept from falling as I came around behind Greg.

I thought about hitting him as his back was turned, but he spun around far too quickly, rendering that idea a nonstarter.

There was no way I could hold my own against Greg, slow and dumb as he may have been. I wasn’t a fighter.

But if I didn’t do something, I was going to get my ass handed to me for what I wished I could say was the first time.

Think, Killian!

At our feet were the discarded lunch trays, and as Greg came for me, ready for round two, I had an idea.

I scooted the tray with my left foot and slid it over to my right as Greg glared hatred at me.

He reared back as he took a step toward me, but as his foot came down, I kicked the lunch tray toward him.

His foot hit the plastic and he slipped. Greg tumbled back and smacked his head hard against the unyielding tile floor.

Yes!

For a brief moment, victory was mine, but I knew he wouldn’t stay down for long.

I need to finish this.

I knelt and picked up one of the other lunch trays as Greg groaned and sat up. I stepped toward him and brought the tray up in an arc. It caught Greg under the chin, and a dull thud echoed around us before being drowned out by the cheer of the crowd as Greg’s head snapped back, and he crashed to the ground.

The roar of the crowd was deafening.

I turned to Sarah and Omar, who’d been watching the fight with about half of the rest of the lunchroom. My surprise attack earned me a cheer from the crowd, but I didn’t want to stick around for them to turn on me when Greg stood up.

“Let’s get the hell out of here.”

They both nodded and started for the door, with me right behind them.

I got out of the row of lunch tables before a male voice rose from the crowd. “Hey, Killjoy, watch your step.”

A leg shot out and caught me on the shin, and I went sprawling.

I landed hard, but luckily, I managed to disperse most of the impact with my face. I groaned as I got up and whirled on my unsuspecting assailant.

It was Dexter, one of Greg’s underlings, who only hung around him because of Greg’s money.

By the time I got to my feet, there was a slow intake of breath, and I just knew what I’d find if I turned around.

Dexter had bought enough time for Greg to get back to his feet.

And now the crowd had gathered around me, making escape a challenge unless I wanted to crowd surf my way to safety.

He closed in far quicker than I’d have given him credit for. Only now, he was twice as furious.

If I wasn’t getting a beating before, I sure as hell was now.

Well, shit.

Fighter though I wasn’t, I still raised my hands as unstoppable force met easily removable object, and Greg’s fist came for me without mercy.

Chapter 2- Tuesday Blues

I woke up with a blistering headache in the nurse’s office. The off-white plaster walls and cracked ceiling tile were very familiar to me.

As I sat up, I groaned as the pain in my head only magnified.

“Here,” a stern, motherly voice said from my left.

She shoved a plastic cup of water under my nose, and as I looked over, the school nurse clicked her tongue.

Mrs. Penelope was older, in her fifties, but still carried a hint of youthfulness on her face that time or dumbass kids had yet to wear down.

“I swear, Killian, I can’t go a week without you back in my office again,” she said with a very disapproving shake of her head.

“Sorry, Mrs. P. My fault. Slipped on a banana peel. Should have been paying more attention to where I was going.”

She barked out a sharp laugh. “And what was it last week? Oh yeah, you fell on a rock…four times.”

“Only three times, the fourth was because of this school’s rampant banana peel problem.”

She held out her hand and dropped a few aspirins onto my lap. “You’re going to have a hell of a bruise, but there’s no broken skin or bones. You’ll be fine…well, until you ‘trip’ again.”

I took the pills and downed them with the water she’d handed me. The soothing liquid quenched my thirst, and placebo or not, my headache lessened as I swallowed the pills.

“What can I say? I’m clumsy.”

“Clumsy my ass,” she said.

I grinned at her and stood. “Thanks for patching me up, doc. I’ll watch where I’m going from now on.”

She shook her head. “No, you won’t. You’ll be back in here in a couple of days, and ’round and ’round we go.” Mrs. Penelope stood from my bedside and waved me out of her office. “Now git’ before I call your mother.”

“Good luck. She’s knee-deep in dirt, studying rocks for some big project. She won’t even text me back.”

I yawned and checked the time. My computer science class had been going for nearly twenty minutes.

No way is it worth walking in late, even with an excuse. I’m going home.

“I uh─”

“Yes, you can go home. I won’t stop you.”

I laughed as I headed out the door. “You’re the best.”

On the way to my locker, I was stopped by a very unwelcome presence.

Greg leaned against the cheap metal, and from the scowl on his face, things weren’t settled between us by a long shot.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. “What do you want, Greg? Haven’t we pissed each other off enough for one day?”

He grinned. “Not even close. You and I have unfinished business.”

I shook my head. “You already sent me to the nurse’s office. What more do you want? My teeth? I would, but my rampant meth habit took most of them, and the loan shark I owe money to said he is coming to collect the rest, so you can’t have those.” I shrugged. “I’ve got about five dollars hidden in my underwear for emergencies. If you want to risk it, go for it.”

“Why you!” He pushed off my locker and grabbed me by the collar.

“Knock it off, Greg. I don’t have all day,” a new, feminine voice said.

I was saved from having to turn right back around to the nurse’s office by Adeline Woods. I wasn’t going to say she was the prettiest girl in school.

It was the truth, but I wasn’t going to say it.

She was gorgeous in that punk rock, hipster way. Long, wavy blue hair, which was obviously a done-at-home dye job. A thin, narrow face with small lips and shamrock green eyes. They should have been stunning, but something chipped the emerald in her gaze, the luster rubbed away.

She crossed her arms as she glanced from Greg to me.

“Fine.” He shoved me back into the lockers. “You got lucky today.”

“Hurray,” I said, deadpan as I held my hand up.

Greg stalked off toward Adeline, and as he turned away from me, I glanced at her, nodding my thanks.

She returned it and then walked away with Greg in tow, leading him down the hall and away from me, but probably not to class, considering it was halfway over.

What she sees in that dick, I’ll never understand. But then again. I don’t understand most women.

My feet scuffed the orange floor as I grabbed my jacket from my locker and headed for home.

Though the sun took most of the autumn chill from the air as I started walking.

My headache had lessened, and the air was refreshing enough that I fancied a run. I put some speed into my steps and hadn’t gotten more than a running start before someone else was calling for me.

“Hey, Kill. Join the track team!”

I turned to find Robby Mack keeping a steady pace a few hundred feet behind me, his light brown hair and jogging clothes heavy with sweat.

“Pass,” I shouted back. “I get enough exercise just running from my problems.”

He laughed, and with him trying to lap me, I put a little more speed into my jog.

I got home, dropped my bag by the door, and swiftly ran upstairs. No one was home, but I had a few hours until Dad was supposed to be back.

He said he would be home in time for me to take Meghan, but knowing him, he’ll forget.

I went to my room and plugged my phone in to charge and then went to take a shower. When I was clean, I headed to the kitchen, throwing a few cold cuts between two slices of bread before I scarfed it down.

From a glance at the clock on the wall, it was almost two.

Meghan gets home at three, so I can’t fire up my pc. Besides, Omar and Sarah are still at school.

The shower, sandwich, and a few more Tylenol fixed my mild concussion right up, but none did anything to alleviate my boredom.

As I got up and went back upstairs to grab my phone, I paused by the door to the garage.

“Could work out,” I muttered. “Maybe if I was shredded, Greg would bow down to my eight pack.”

I’d been slacking this week since I spent so much time gaming, so getting a decent workout in, certainly wouldn’t be the worst idea I’d ever had.

With a groan, I changed clothes and went into the garage.

Half of the gray concrete was designated space for one of our two cars, but both were missing. The other half of the garage was filled with a variety of exercise equipment. I lowered onto the weight bench and started performing a bench press with single forty-five-pound weights on either side.

I managed ten, but I strained on the last rep.

One set down. Two left.

When I finished the bench press, I moved to curls and squats and then managed about five pull-ups before my arms gave out.

It was a bit of a random full-body workout, but I’d worked up a sweat and my muscles quivered, so I’d given it a good attempt.

And I killed an hour. By the time I get out of the shower for the second time, Meghan should be home.

I used all the hot water, and it was only half out of spite, and when I was done, Meghan was indeed home. And per her usual manner, she burst into the bathroom with her don’t give a damn attitude as I was washing my hair.

“Killian, hurry up. I’ve got to be there in thirty minutes!”

“Is Dad home?”

“Yeah, he pulled in just as the bus dropped me off.”

“Okay,” I said, rinsing my hair out and turning off the water. “So, scram, I need to change.”

She laughed. “I’ll be downstairs.”

And with a rush of wind, she was gone. I risked a peek out of the shower curtain and cursed aloud. “You couldn’t close the door behind you?” I shouted.

“My bad!”

I hated Tuesdays almost as much as Mondays. They were essentially the same day, just spray painted a slightly different color.

My alarm woke me, and I begrudgingly climbed out of bed to start my morning routine. I’d gotten to bed at a decent hour last night, so I was at least a little more refreshed.

Maybe sleeping for more than four hours a night is beneficial. Who knew?

I took a shower, brushed my teeth, and combed my hair before Meghan hogged the bathroom for herself. After I was marginally more presentable, I stepped out into the hall and stopped.

The house was quiet.

Some might say too quiet.

The stereo in Meghan’s room wasn’t blaring the latest boy band she had a crush on at a soothing billion and five decibels, and the usual scents of bacon and fresh coffee were missing.

“Mom, Dad,” I called out.

When no one answered, I risked my manhood by opening Meghan’s door and peering inside.

Her room was the same size as mine, but much more organized. A few posters on the walls depicted the newest hip bands and some soccer god with a multitude of tattoos crossing his body. Her bed was made, the pink and purple patterned sheets pristine, hardly a crease. Meghan’s clothes were neatly arranged on her chair, and her backpack rested by her desk. Everything was how she liked it, but she wasn’t in her room.

Did she stay over at a friend’s? No, that can’t be it. I helped her with her homework for two hours after her game.

I checked my phone for messages, but there was nothing.

Odd. I slipped downstairs, and my socked footsteps echoed in the empty house. I peeked out of the blinds and found both cars gone. Okay, no big deal. Meghan went to school early and just forgot most of her stuff. Mom’s at work, and Dad’s job hunting again.

Nothing to worry about.

I went to the kitchen, and since I had time to eat properly today, I settled on making an omelet after starting the coffee maker. Unfortunately, my cooking skills were lacking, and my sausage and cheese omelet fell apart when I tried to flip it, so I settled for a sausage and egg scramble with cheese.

I sipped on my coffee between bites of food and then left the dishes soaking in the sink.

Might as well get to class early, start working on my Calculus homework that’s due.

It was colder today than yesterday, and my windbreaker barely held up. The neighborhood was calm this morning. Hardly a car rolled by as the wind picked up, and gray storm clouds hung overhead.

I rubbed my hands together, blew some hot air on them, and set off to school.

After my morning jog, I grabbed my books and binder for World History and Calculus and headed to my seat.

Mr. Mitchells was already in class, leaning back in his chair, feet propped up on his metal desk. He looked up from the book he was reading as I came in.

“Don’t tell me hell’s frozen over? Killian Dunn, the first one to walk into my class? It’s a miracle,” he said with a quiet chuckle. “Hey, you mind watching the class for me? I’m going to run out and buy some lotto scratchers.”

His jokes got a rise out of me, and I smiled at him. “Yeah, pick up some for me too. According to market research, yesterday was my lucky day. Let’s see if that holds.”

He laughed. “I’m just glad to see you taking my advice for once,” he said, waving me off, and went back to his book while I started on my homework.

Helping Meg with her school work left me with no time to do mine, but next time, she’s helping me instead.

I chuckled and took out my binder and got to work. I just finished it by the time the bell rang.

Mr. Mitchells put his book down with a sigh and stood to greet the class and begin his lecture. When the bell rang, I left for Calculus.

That class went by as quickly as it could, which made a snail look spritely in comparison, but I turned in my homework on time, and I thought I had a decent chance of scoring a C. After Calculus was English, but as class began, I looked over to find Omar, not in his seat.

Wonder where he’s at. He was fine last night, so I know he isn’t sick. I smiled. He’s ditching to catch up to me. Well, one day of school won’t be near enough.

I sent him a message telling him good luck and turned back to class and tried not to fall asleep out of sheer boredom.

When lunch came around, I went to meet Sarah at our table, but she never showed either.

“What the hell’s going on?” I muttered.

Was it ditch day, and the two of you just forgot to tell me?

I sent them both messages but got no response.

Their absences, along with the empty house this morning, put me on edge. I scratched at my clean-shaven chin and tried to quell the pit of unease roiling in my stomach. I tried to eat, but my appetite was shot, so I went to throw away my tray.

After lunch, the day dragged on. I checked my phone every few minutes, but there weren’t any new messages.

Which really started freaking me out.

When school was finally over, I made a beeline for the door, eager to head home.

It had started raining by the time I made it outside, but I’d forgotten to bring my umbrella. I zipped up my jacket as icy water thudded against my hair and shoulders and took off at a dead sprint. I was going to be soaked to the bone by the time I made it home, but I’d rather get a little wetter and get home faster.

And I was correct. By the time I made it to my porch, I was soaked.

I left my backpack dripping on the tile by the door and immediately went upstairs to shower. The rain sent my teeth chattering but was nice and cool against my aching cheek rather than the skin melting hot water I subjected it to as soon as I got my clothes off.

I stayed under the water for almost an hour until my skin shriveled and pruned, and there was absolutely no hot water left in our aged heater. I stepped out into a heavy cloud of steam that made me lightheaded and woozy.

I tossed my soaked clothes in the laundry basket and went into the hall. I hadn’t checked in my mad dash to the bathroom, but just like this morning, no one was here.

“Anyone home?” I called out.

Nothing but the ending of my echo responded.

“Where the hell is everyone?” I asked. “Better yet, why am I standing in the middle of the hallway, naked, talking to myself?”

I shook my head.

I need therapy.

I turned to head into my room when I realized I’d done a load of laundry last night, and most of my clean clothes were sitting in the dryer waiting to not be folded and thrown in a pile on my bed, which had been quietly waiting to be made for the last six months.

As quickly as I could, I changed. The last thing I wanted was my parents coming home to find me hanging brain in the laundry room. I threw on an old jazz shirt and climbed into a pair of jeans after digging a pair of black boxers from my giant pile of black clothing in my attempt at the world’s lamest needle in a haystack.

When I was suitably dressed, I glugged down a third of a carton of orange juice and checked my phone for the hundredth time.

After a few minutes of wrestling with myself, I gave in and called Dad first and then Meghan when he didn’t answer. When neither of them picked up, I had to resort to calling my mom, even though I knew she was busy at the lab.

All three went to voicemail.

“What the hell is going on?”

My friends hadn’t responded, and my messages were left on sent, which weirded me out. None of us went anywhere without our smartphones. My last resort was to check my computer.

The hardwood steps creaked as I ascended the stairs and went to my room. I opened the door and went inside.

My room was modest, like my sister’s, though far less neat and tidy. It consisted of my bed, numerous posters depicting outdated games going back to my childhood, a 55” flatscreen I’d gotten for my birthday a few years ago, and a small child sitting at my desk, scrolling through the newsfeed on my desktop.

“What the hell?” I shouted as my heart leapt into my throat.

The child had hip length, bright silver hair and absolutely paid me no mind as they twirled side to side in my chair, kicking their legs against the seat. They were on my social media, browsing my pictures, clicking on each one before scrolling to the next.

Well, Killian, this is definitely your house, definitely your room. So, unless your parents adopted without telling you, I’m guessing that blow to the head the other day did what a lifetime of Cheetos and Mountain Dew couldn’t and broke your brain.

Congratulations, you’re insane.

“Okay, whether you're real or not isn’t a conversation I’m ready to have at this point, so I’ll just ask who you are and hope you vanish before I think about this too much.”

They turned slightly at my voice, giving me a glimpse of pale, nearly translucent ivory skin and delicate features: a small nose and chin and very light pink lips.

“Little girl, are you lost? Please say yes for the sake of my sanity.”

The chair spun around to face me, and I was wrong to call him a girl. Even with the long silver hair and childish features, it was undoubtedly a boy.

Though I couldn’t meet his eyes.

“Sorry. Boy.”

He flashed me a toothy grin at my mistake and held up his hand. “That’s quite alright. It’s not the first time I’ve been mistaken for a girl, and it certainly won’t be the last,” he said, his voice light, but he spoke with far more eloquence than I expected from a child.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, as my mouth went dry.

Fear crept into my bones at the base of my spine and wormed its way to the nape of my neck. I backed away from the strange child as my fight or flight reflexes kicked off without warning and screamed at me to run.

He laughed as the color fled from my face. “You don’t have to be afraid of me. I mean you no harm.”

I realized then what set me off about him. He spoke with a child’s voice, but the tone he used lacked the innocence of a child.

And that terrified me.

“Come now, Killian. Relax and sit down. We have much to discuss.”

“How do you know my name?” I asked, my heart in my throat.

“I know many things, but that’s an easy question. Give me a harder one.” He crossed his legs under him and propped his chin in his hand, giving me his undivided attention. “And don’t bother asking how I got in. The door was unlocked, as if I needed it.”

“So, you’re not a figment of my imagination, and I’m not going insane?”

“You’re perfectly sane.”

I sighed. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

It took a second to compose myself and shake the lingering sense of unease emanating from the child, but I managed.

I licked my lips as my hand trembled involuntarily. “What are you doing here, then? Who are you?”

He lit up, a smirk formed on his lips. “That’s the right question.”

He hopped down from the chair and crossed the small room to stand before me. Even though he barely came up to my chest, I wanted with all my soul for him not to take a single step closer.

He tilted his head up and spoke. “Look at me, Killian. Really look at me.”

I gulped, and with shaking limbs, I met his gaze.

My mind couldn’t comprehend what I was seeing.

It was a normal enough face, a child’s face until I met his eyes, and I knew then that I really had gone insane.

Because the child’s eyes weren’t human, they were the eyes of something beyond my understanding.

They were deeply recessed in their sockets, casting shadows as dark as the night sky. In the center of the darkness were two miniature suns. They smoldered and spun lazily on their axis as boiling plasma roiled like lava and sun flares burst from the surface.

It was for only a split second, but I had to avert my gaze before his eyes blinded me. I lowered my head and backed up, only to catch my foot on the doorframe.

I went tumbling out into the hall and landed hard, hitting my back against the wall, leaving a dent in it.

The child hadn’t moved. He just stared, waiting for me to say something.

“Who are you?” I asked, my voice cracking. “What are you?

“My name is Callisto. And I’m a god.” He smiled, and his sunfire eyes came alight, banishing any shadows lingering in the room.

I rubbed my throbbing head, not wanting to comprehend what he’d said. “A─a god?”

“Correct. You should be honored.”

“What do you want with me?”

Callisto winked, one of his suns going dark while the other blinded me. “I’d like your help with something, a rather simple task,” he said, teasing the answer.

“What task?”

He knelt with a mischievous smirk on his face. “Nothing much. I just need your help to destroy the world.”

Chapter 3- The Mantle

“Destroy the world?” I shook my head as my mind spun in endless circles. “Sure, that sounds like a fun weekend project. Why not?”

Callisto tilted his head to the side, his eyes lighting up. “Just like that?”

I threw my hands up. “Of course not! Are you fucking crazy? I’m not going to help you destroy the world. What I am going to do is schedule an appointment with the doctor to discuss the clear psychotic break I’m having.”

I whirled around and walked out of the room. I got into the hallway and found Callisto standing just in front of me.

“Okay, so you can teleport too. At least my insanity comes up with some pretty cool ideas.”

Callisto frowned and poked me in the chest. “As I said, you’re not insane.”

“Can you just let me think I am? It’d make handling this a little easier.”

“Nope,” he said and vanished. I turned around, and he was back in my room, beckoning me inside. “I don’t have all the time in the world to wait for your brain to catch up to reality. If you could just take what I’m saying as fact and quit thinking you’re crazy, it’ll make all this so much easier.”

I moved to my bed and sat back, running my hand through my hair while keeping my eyes on Callisto. “Okay, so you expect me to take you asking me to destroy the world as a serious question?”

“Exactly.”

“Yeah, not happening.”

Destroy the world? What the actual hell? I tried to find some logical answer to all of this, some prank or jest, but as I stared at Callisto, at the suns blazing in his eyes, I knew it couldn’t be a joke. Why couldn’t I have just been crazy?

Callisto threw back his head and laughed at my response. As he came back up, he spoke. “That’s an understandable response. Who in their right mind would agree to that unless they were a psychopath?”

I grabbed a pillow next to me and squeezed it in my hands, folding it and trying to crumple it into a ball, just for something to do, to have something normal in my hands.

Okay, so let’s assume I’m not bonkers here. That means I have a literal god in my bedroom, and he’s asking me to destroy the world like a person would ask to check the mail. I shook my head. Okay, put aside the fact that your reality just broke. We can table that breakdown for later.

I stood from my bed and threw the crumpled pillow at Callisto. “What the hell is your problem? Why do you want to destroy the world? You’re a god. Why not try fixing it first!”

He stepped to the side as the pillow hit the wall behind him and fell to the carpet. Callisto ignored my questions for a second and went over to my dresser, opening the drawers and pulling out clothes at random before tossing them to the floor. “That’s a very complicated question, with one very simple answer.”

“Which is?”

He shrugged. “I’m bored.”

I stared slack-jawed at him. “You’re…bored?”

“Extremely bored,” Callisto said, and padded over to the edge of my bed. He jumped back, plopping onto the center of the mattress before he took what few other pillows were on the bed and started rearranging them, stacking them on top of each other. Then with a touch, sent them scattering.

“I’ve spent the last few thousand years here, watching this world and hoping things would get entertaining, but alas, you’ve stagnated. All you humans ever do now is eat, mate, and lead meaningless lives bereft of any emotion or purpose. It’s miserable to watch.”

I shrugged. “Then why not do something besides watch? You’re a god.”

He frowned, balancing a pillow on the back of his hand. “Well, it’s not that simple. I can’t eat food, and the fact that I look like a ten-year-old child means that any human who wants to get busy with me needs to die a very excruciating death. Then there’s the whole no-killing rule, which makes things complicated, to say the least.

“Though I will say watching used to be a lot more fun. You humans used to know how to get things done. Man, were the Crusades a fun time, and then there were the world wars, so many new toys to play with, and you’ve hardly used them at all. It’s been nothing but progress, peace, and boredom.”

“My bad. I’ll let them know at the next nuclear holocaust meeting, don’t worry.” I went and sat down in my chair, still reeling from everything, while Callisto built a makeshift fort with my bedsheets. “So…you want me to destroy the world out of sheer boredom?”

“Yes!” he shouted, exploding out of the blanket fort. “Will you?”

“Hell no.” I scoffed. “Bring about Armageddon your damn self.”

Callisto laughed and jumped off the bed, landing on one foot before pirouetting towards me. He wagged a finger in my face. “You think you have a choice? That’s cute.”

Wait, what?

“Do I not?”

He frowned, rolling his shoulders back and forth before shrugging. “Well, yes. Technically. Free will and all that. Shardbearers can’t go against it.” He chuckled. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t rig the game in our favor.”

His lips lifted in a knowing smile as the flames in his eyes smoldered. My heart sank as I stared into his eyes.

He’s done something. I shivered as a gust of warm air from the vent sent goosebumps up my arms. My parents. Meghan.

“You took my family, didn’t you?”

“Got it in one.” Callisto’s smile grew even wider, and his eyes burned brightly, bathing the room in lambent light. “But not just your family. Your friends as well. I was rather thorough. Most everyone that you’ve ever cared about is gone.”

I stood from the chair so fast I didn’t even realize I moved. My hands shook with anger, my finger trembled as I pointed judgment at the god.

“Give them back. Right now.”

He shook his head. “Can’t. Then you’d never say yes.”

I threw my hands up as my mind spun. He’d clearly planned this before approaching me. Which meant he needed me for something. Needed me bad enough to kidnap my family to who the hell knew where.

“Why? Why go to this length just for me? I’m a nobody.”

“Because it has to be you. Whether either of us likes it, I need you to become my harbinger of the apocalypse. But you’d refuse otherwise, so I’ve had to take different measures.”

I backed up, wanting more than anything to run screaming.

But I couldn’t. I had to know.

“My friends, my family. Where are they?”

“Alive. Safe and sound until I need them…I’m not entirely heartless, you know. Think of this as motivation.”

“What happens if I say no?”

Callisto vanished and reappeared right in front of me. His gaze was so intense that I withered under it as he smiled too wide. “Then I kill everyone in front of you and scatter their souls to the abyss.”

I gulped as sweat beaded along my neck. “You’d do that?”

“No.” He laughed. “Weren’t you listening before? I can’t directly kill a human being.”

“Then you can go to hell.”

“Not so fast.” Callisto winked. “Just because I can’t kill them doesn’t mean I can’t leave them where they’re at. They’re in stasis, for lack of a better word. Removed from the passage of time. If you say no, I leave, and they stay there, lost to time.”

I tried to fight what he was saying, but it was too much, and I couldn’t handle it. My head and stomach couldn’t take it. I rushed to the bathroom and barely made it before I heaved chunks into the toilet.

When I was finished, I wiped the bile from my mouth and drank from the faucet. The cool water was enough to ease some of my turmoil.

I stayed there staring into my pale eyes and hoped beyond anything in the world that this was all just a nightmare, some strange fever dream that I would soon wake up from, and all would be right with the world again.

With a glance at Callisto, I blew out a long breath.

Not likely.

Am I seriously considering this?

I didn’t think I had a choice. The choice he gave me wasn’t a choice at all.

I’m going to have to accept. But as I stared into my pale blue eyes, a jolt of electricity ran up my spine. He said it has to be me.

Which meant that he needed me.

Which gave me leverage.

It wasn’t much, but it afforded me some measure of control over this whole insane situation and calmed some of my nerves as I walked back into the room.

Callisto had started ransacking my closet, trying on clothes at random.

The entire world for my family. I sighed as my body went cold. No one is worth that trade off. Not even my family.

But I can’t just abandon them.

I sat back in the chair. “Destroy the world, and I get my family back?”

“Uh-huh,” he said and tried on one of my old baseball caps from middle school, spinning around with a too innocent smile on his face. “How do I look?”

I chucked my computer mouse at him. He disappeared as it sailed toward him and reappeared, hovering over my bed, my bright red baseball cap still on his head. “Nice throw, but you shouldn’t waste time. You have a decision to make.”

“It’s not a decision at all,” I whispered, hanging my head. “Even if it’s my family, I can’t sacrifice the entire world for my own selfish needs. I couldn’t live with myself.” I steeled myself and glanced at him once more. “Hell, even if I did, you want me to destroy the world. I’d only bring them back to a wasteland.” I shook my head. “No. Better to leave them where they’re at than subject them to that.”

Here goes nothing.

“Find someone else to blow up the world.” I plastered a false grin on my face despite my hammering heart. “But you can’t, can you? It has to be me. You said it yourself. So, either you make it worth my while, or we’re done here.”

Callisto grimaced and wrung his hands as he hung in the air. The flash of rage vanished in an instant, and a bright, cheery smile rose on his lips once more. “That’s fair! But what to offer you?” He rubbed his chin in thought, all while continuing his Peter Pan impression, drifting around my room with ease. “Aha!” he said and dropped with a thunk onto my bed. “I’ve got a better offer for you, something that’s sure to entice you if you win.”

Callisto climbed off the bed and held his hand out to me. A sparkling light appeared in his palm for a moment before fading away, leaving behind a tiny teardrop-shaped crystal vial, holding a droplet of glowing amber liquid inside.

“This is a fragment of my divinity, and with it, it can grant a single specific wish.”

I reached my hand out automatically, but the vial vanished before my eyes.

“So,” I eyed him sideways, “I get a wish if I destroy the world?”

“Yep.”

“And I can wish for anything? Even to put the world back to the way it was before?”

“Even that.” He nodded. “If that is what you truly want, then the wish can make it happen.”

“It seems you’ve left me no choice.” I frowned, crossing my arms. I was about to accept because he’d backed me into too tight a corner. But as I opened my mouth, Callisto’s lips tugged up ever so slightly in the corner of my eye.

A wish? He had that answer on the tip of his tongue far too quickly. I’m still playing right into his hands.

I stopped myself just before I agreed and held up my hand. “Only a fool negotiates from a position of equality. That’s a saying my mother picked up from somewhere, but she sure loves it when she’s trying to get us to do something we don’t want to.” I shook my head. “You’re a god, and no way does a dumbass kid like me pull one over on a god.

“You answered far too quickly.” I narrowed my eyes. “It seems to me that you’d have to be really clever to get people to do what you want if you can’t directly force free will.”

Callisto smiled, and his eyes smoldered as he somersaulted off the bed. He stood before me and placed his hands behind his back. “So, where does that leave us? Is my offer of your family and a wish not enticing enough?”

“Like hell it is.”

I had to think quickly to come up with something that would be worth all of this to me, but he had me good. My family and a way to bring the world back if I went through with his insane plan. What more could I ask for from a literal god?

I held my hand up, fingers splayed. “Five. Five unconditional favors from a god.” I smirked. “There’s a lot more to this than you’re telling me. And no way in hell am I just going to dance to your tune without you making it worth my while.”

He crossed his arms, lips pursed as he stared at me for a long moment. “Three.”

“Six,” I countered.

“What? You went up.”

“I can do this all day.”

“Four,” Callisto said, shaking his head.

“Seven.”

He held his hands up. “Okay. Okay. Five favors of your choosing.”

With that, the last of my resistances fell away, and there was only one thing left.

I huffed, letting out a weary sigh, and shook my head. “Fine. Fine, you deranged god. I’ll play your game.”

His lips rose in a sadistic Cheshire grin. “Then the mantle is yours, my Demon Lord.”

System Notice!

You have accepted the God Callisto’s offer and have now been granted the title of Harbinger. Harbinger bestows the class: Demon Lord and the Unique Item: Soul of the Demon Lord.

Welcome, Demon Lord, to the Apocalypse Game!

Item Acquired: Soul of the Demon Lord (Soulbound)

+10 to Strength and Wisdom

(Locked) Level 25 Required

(Locked) Level 50 Required

(Locked) Level 75 Required

(Locked) Level 100 Required

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Level: 1

Exp: 0/165

I just stared at the screen, for it could be nothing but an imitation of a computer screen floating in front of my face, semi-translucent so I could see through it to Callisto’s smiling face. “What the hell is this?”

“Your Mantle, it can’t be a game without a way to level up.”

“I can see that, but what do I do with it?”

Callisto frowned before looking around the room. He dropped to the floor and grabbed the plastic case of Oxide Online. “Geez, you’re supposed to be a gamer. I thought this would be instinctual. You level up, obviously.

“Think Stats.”

Well, here goes nothing. Stats.

Stat Page

Strength: 10

Constitution: 0

Perception: 0

Endurance: 0

Agility: 0

Wisdom: 10

Charisma: 0

I waved away the screen and scowled at Callisto.

“Sorry. I should’ve known that when you asked me to destroy the world, I’d have to level up first. How silly of me.”

Callisto chuckled and floated into the air and out of my room. I followed him into the hallway, and as I passed Meghan’s room, a pang of sorrow sucker punched me in the gut. Her clothes were where she’d left them, her soccer gear lying by the door.

I’ll get you back, Megs. I don’t know how or when, but I promise I’ll bring everyone home again.

I turned back around and Callisto vanished.

A noise came from downstairs, and I headed to the stairs. I found Callisto in the kitchen, scooping nearly a whole jar of peanut butter onto a slice of bread and smashing another piece on top. He picked up the drooping sandwich and took a large bite, but his teeth passed right through it.

He turned to me as I entered. “Hungry? I made you a sandwich.”

I ignored him and grabbed the carton of orange juice from the fridge. With no one to scold me for drinking out of the carton, I took a large gulp and set it on the table.

“You should really use a glass, you know,” Callisto said, still holding the sandwich.

“And you shouldn’t be going around trying to destroy the world, you know,” I said.

He laughed and dropped the untouched sandwich. It landed with a thump on a paper plate and a large gob of peanut butter spilled out. “Yeah, but what’s a little systematic genocide between friends?”

“Speaking of, how do I go about ending the world? There isn’t exactly a Wikipedia page for it.”

Callisto propped himself on the counter, swinging his legs and hitting them against the wooden cabinet underneath him. “That, my Demon Lord, is entirely up to you. You can go about it any way you choose, but my recommendation, try to level up quickly. You’ll have certain skills as you advance that will aid you in your progress. Along with some help from my creations.”

“What do you mean? Skills? Creations?”

“The first is easy enough. Think Skills. As for the second…you’ll see,” he said.

What the hell? Guess I’m just going with it at this point. Skills.

Skill Page

Demon Claws: Elongates hands to wicked points sharp enough to sever bone and steel.

Damage: 50-75 (Clawing) (Scales with Strength)

Cost: 75 Mana

Duration: 3 Minutes

Cooldown: 1 Minute

Progress to Rank 2: 0/25

I closed the Mantle and shrugged. “It sounds cool, but what does it do?”

“Guess you’ll have to find out, won’tcha?” He pointed at the door. “Now, take a look outside.”

Confused, I went and opened it, taking a step outside before my brain registered what I was seeing. My stomach lurched as my jaw dropped.

It was a rainy day in October just a few hours ago, right?

Snow fell from overcast skies, the sun shining behind them. It wasn’t cold enough for the snow to stick, so I got a clear look at the world.

And it looked like the apocalypse had started without me.

The houses opposite mine were damaged, broken glass littered yellowed yards. Mr. Finnegan’s house was completely burnt to the ground, and it looked like a bomb had gone off next to Mrs. Johnson's house. Half the living room was obliterated and blackened, debris strewn across her dead grass.

Abandoned cars littered the streets, broken windshields and taillights mixed with suitcases and luggage tossed about on the concrete.

“What is this?”

Callisto laughed behind me, and he faded through the side of my house. Half his body stuck out from the brick. “Well, as you pointed out, destroying the world is a rather monumental task, even for the Demon Lord. I helped you out by getting the ball rolling, so to speak.”

I gestured at the broken world in front of me. ”How did you manage all this in a couple of hours?”

He ducked his head and grinned sheepishly. “About that. It’s actually been a little over a month. I kept you in a time lock while we’ve been talking, courtesy of a friend.”

“So, what the hell am I supposed to do?”

“You catch up,” he said and shoved me off the porch. “Everyone else has had over a month to level up. You’ve got some grinding to do, noob!”

He laughed.

“What?” I asked. “That’s all you’re giving me?”

Callisto nodded, sticking out his tongue. “You just had to try and outsmart a god, didn’t you?” He puffed his cheeks out in a grin. “Now, I’ll be more than happy to explain everything…for a favor.”

I scowled.

So that’s how you’re going to play this. Fine.

“Like hell am I going to make it that easy for you. I’ll figure this out on my own.”

“Good luck then, Demon Lord. Hope you survive!” He started cackling as he faded away and left me standing on my front porch, utterly clueless on how to proceed or what even to do next.

“Dammit,” I cursed and rubbed my arms, my breath fogged in front of my face.

It got cold quickly this year.

I marched back inside and to my room, digging around in the mess Callisto had made before finding my winter jacket. It was heavy, waxed canvas and would keep out the worst of the cold. I added my hiking boots to my jeans and T-shirt ensemble and was about to head out the door when a thought struck me.

I need to prepare better than this. If this is the apocalypse, I need supplies, a weapon. I opened my desk drawer and pulled out the cheap folding knife I'd picked up at a flea market. But as soon as I opened it, the blade popped out and just narrowly missed slicing into my foot as it crashed against the floor.

Well, so much for that idea.

I need something more than a knife anyway.

Dad kept a pistol in the nightstand by the bed, and he’d told me where it was in case of an emergency.

I’d say this qualifies.

I crossed the hall and crept into their room, feeling like I was violating some sacred temple. It was an unspoken rule between parents and children that while parents could barge into their kid’s room at all hours, you never set foot in your parent’s room unless the apocalypse was outside.

The room was stagnant like it had been empty for a while, and I disturbed that emptiness when I pushed the door open. I didn’t want to linger here, so I shuffled to the bedside table and threw it open. Nestled in between several orange pill bottles, a half-empty box of condoms, and a ton of old receipts was the revolver.

It was a Colt Detective Special and belonged to my great grandfather, who’d been a cop back in the early twenties. He left it to my grandfather when he passed, and then it was left to my dad. I’d only shot it once when I was twelve, but I remembered the thing had a helluva kick, though that was years ago.

As soon as I picked up the gun, a new screen appeared.

Weapon: Colt Detective Special

A pistol that saw its original owner through gang wars and prohibition. Now left to gather dust in a nightstand. What a shame.

Reliable. Iconic. You’re probably going to need more ammo.

Damage: 30-35 (Ballistic)

Ammunition: .38 Special (6 Rounds)

Condition: Neglected (12% Rate of Firearm Failure, -15% Damage)

Neglected? Yeah, sitting unused in a drawer for years is pretty much the textbook definition of neglect—that or daddy issues.

I stuck the pistol into the pocket of my jacket and looked around for some extra ammo, but I didn’t have any luck.

I headed back downstairs and found one of my mom’s expensive leather messenger bags. It was from her job, the Windigo Industries logo stamped on the flap. It had ample room for supplies. I dumped out the papers and rock samples and loaded up as much food and supplies as I could find in the house.

I had some luck in that regard as I came away with six bottles of water, a nearly full pack of protein bars, and a little first aid kit.

As I finished stuffing my bag full, a screen appeared in my Mantle.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 0 Coins

Food: 2 Day’s Supply

Water: 2 Day’s Supply

Ammo

.38 Special: 6 Rounds

Additional Items

First Aid Kit (Low Grade)

Apocalypse currency? What the hell is that?

I cursed Callisto again for not explaining anything and threw the bag over my shoulder.

It’s not much, but it’s better than walking into the apocalypse with my wit and a go-get-'em attitude.

With my bag packed and the lingering unease in my gut, I headed out. With one last glance, I left my home for what might be the last time and walked out into a strange, nightmarish world.

Chapter 4- No Shotguns in the Halls

A stiff chill smacked me in the face as I stepped onto the porch, and I resisted the urge to shiver as a heaviness settled into my lungs with each breath.

Running in this weather is going to suck.

I pulled my jacket tight as I started down the steps. I needed to figure out a plan, and quickly. If this was the apocalypse, and it’d been happening for a month now, I was going into it blind. I pulled my phone from my pocket and checked it. I had a full battery but no service.

Odd. Or perhaps terrifying is a more apt word. But, I mean, if I was going to destroy the world, communications would be the first thing I’d want gone.

I walked down the driveway and stopped, kneeling before checking up and down the street for a solid minute. First-person shooters weren’t exactly my forte. In a twisted sense of irony, I vastly preferred survival and crafting games. And the first rule of survival was never just rush in blind.

I’m not sure how much gamer logic applies, but it’s what I’ve got to go off of, so it’ll have to do for now.

My eyes swept the empty street for any sign of movement or danger, but there was nothing, or nothing I could see at any rate. After a minute or two of feeling slightly ridiculous, I stood and moved.

“You know, I’d rather look a little ridiculous where no one can see me than get ambushed and devoured by bands of roving, cannibalistic, Mad Max wannabes,” I muttered under my breath. “And I should probably sort out the whole talking to myself when no one’s around habit. Muttering to myself in the apocalypse is probably not the look I want to go for.”

As I approached a late model minivan with several of my child is this or that stickers on the back windshield, I paused, leaning on the bumper while I kicked an errant coffee cup rolling in the wind.

I don’t have any sort of plan about where to go or what to do. Come on, Killian, use your skull for more than just a container for your teeth.

Off the top of my head, my immediate best bet was Grissom High. It was the largest building around, and it would’ve been well stocked with food and supplies. If I was going to take shelter anywhere around here, it would be my first choice.

Hey, look at that. Took barely a minute. Efficiency, thy name is Killian.

I walked along, careful as I stepped over random shards of broken glass littering the street, along with innumerable clothing items and sentimental knick-knacks that my neighbors had abandoned in a hurry.

“Hmm.”

Running to something, or from something.

I began checking the unlocked cars as I came across them for anything worth looting, but there wasn’t anything even close but a half-eaten candy bar in the cup holder of a gray sedan a few hundred feet from my house.

And as I turned the corner, I found a grisly wreck.

A flashy red mustang had T-boned an older model panel van. The hefty steel of the van easily held against the fiberglass and plastic, crumpling the hood of the mustang like a tomato can and spilling once red tomato juice from the driver's side door. The driver’s rotten corpse lay in pieces. Nothing but blackened, decayed flesh strewn with maggots.

My stomach lurched, and I turned, falling to my knees and heaving onto the sidewalk. Nothing but bile came up and burned in my throat as I vomited my guts out. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and washed the vile out with the bottle of water in my pack.

When I composed myself again, I continued, but refused to look at the mangled corpse again. Nearly every single house I walked by had been looted, or the families had been in an incredible hurry as they fled. More suitcases and trash bags filled with clothes sat forgotten or strewn open on porches or in yards.

A flock of birds cawed from a nearby dead tree as I passed, and I nearly had a heart attack. I fumbled for the revolver in my pocket, but it took too long for me to draw it.

Holy hell! I clutched at my speeding heart and calmed myself. I need to keep the gun out or find a holster. If that were an enemy, I’d be dead.

I kept the revolver in hand but my finger off the trigger as I passed the large chain-link fence covered with advertisements that surrounded the baseball field.

When I rounded the fence, the school came into view.

It was a war-zone.

The windows were all shattered and busted, heavy chunks of brick ripped from the walls, and half a dozen scorch marks meant something big had gone down. Hundreds of spent ammo casings lay strewn over the grass, along with too many bloodstains, muted brown splatters, and streaks that told a grisly story.

Too many people had been injured, and the blood and scuff marks told me they’d been dragged into the school.

There were no bodies, and I couldn’t tell how long ago the battle had happened.

As I stepped onto school grounds, a notification crashed in front of me.

Grissom High School: Outpost

Fortification Level: 4

Grissom City Threat Level: 6

Safe Zone: Inactive

What the hell? Fortification? Safe zones? What is this? I had no answer, which was becoming incredibly annoying rather quickly. Damn you, Callisto.

Though it stands to reason that if this is an outpost, people will be inside.

Should I risk it?

I didn’t see another option besides bypassing the school and heading straight to the city, but that seemed even more foolhardy than braving the school.

Guess I have my answer.

Gun raised, I headed inside the building.

I pushed the double doors open as silently as I could and stepped out of the frigid winter air to the calm stillness of Grissom High. The warmth that met me told me that the building wasn’t abandoned, that or they’d left the heater on.

I guess a sky-high electric bill is the least of anyone’s worries at this point.

The thud of the door was soft, but in the silent air, it was louder than a gunshot. I winced as the echo reverberated through the hallway, and I ducked behind a row of blue lockers and waited for a response to the noise.

Nothing, not a peep.

There wasn’t a sound in the place, but I had a sinking feeling that it wasn’t abandoned. It didn’t feel like an empty school. There was a liveliness to the space, some ineffable quality that told me I wasn’t alone.

I couldn’t cower behind the lockers forever, so with trepidation pulsing through me, I moved forward.

My footfalls echoed softly on the soft orange tile as I passed open classrooms. Most of them were a mess, desks overturned, papers and books everywhere. But as I went deeper, there were a few signs of life. Makeshift bunks and sleeping bags were in a few of the rooms with boarded-up windows. I wanted to call out and see if anyone was here, but my brain vetoed that idea.

Let’s just announce our presence to potentially dangerous people. Anyone could be here. Murderers, rapists…Jehovah’s Witnesses.

The longer I remained undetected, the better.

I came upon a crossroads that led to the cafeteria and the gym. I decided to check the gym first when there was a squeak of rubber on tile. Someone’s tennis shoe rubbed against the floor, just barely audible.

Then there was the very audible sound of a shell being racked into a shotgun.

I threw myself to the side as someone attempted to take my life.

The boom rang loud in my ears as pellets struck the floor and wall to my right as I hit the ground hard. I didn’t bother aiming and brought my revolver in the general direction of the shooter and fired. The pistol bucked against my hand, stinging my wrist as the deafening blast of gunfire rang through my skull. As soon as I fired, I scrambled to a set of lockers for any semblance of cover I could find. Hiding behind them for all I was worth.

“Friendly, friendly!” I shrieked at the gunman.

Silence stretched for a second before being broken by the clack of another shell being chambered. “Yeah, right. Like I’m going to fall for that bullshit!” the shotgunner said in a harsh feminine voice.

“No tricks, I’m friendly.”

“You tried to shoot me.”

“You fired first, asshole!” I shouted.

“Fu─“ she began, but was cut off by a familiar voice.

“Adeline, that’s enough. Hold your fire.”

I turned around to a terrifying sight. Six people, all wearing dirty clothes and what looked like military issue body armor. Each of them holding very large weapons pointed at my back.

“Ah…hello,” I said and froze, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible.

Most of them were strangers, but I recognized the one who’d spoken. Mr. Mitchells lowered his weapon and stared at me in disbelief. “Killian…is that you?”

“Yeah, could you not shoot me, please? I’m having a really bad day.”

He ran over and helped me to my feet before grabbing me in a rough hug. “Jesus, son. I thought you were dead like the rest.”

Oh right. It’s only been a couple of hours for me, but he hasn’t seen me in over a month. And a month in the apocalypse could be a long freaking time.

“It’s good to see you too, Mr. Mitchells,” I managed to eke out through his bear hug.

He let go of me and stood back. “Where have you been? How are you alive?”

“It’s a very long story,” I said and stowed my gun away. “And frankly, I doubt you’d believe me if I told you.”

He stopped, his eyes narrowing. “I understand you’re entitled to your secrets, but things haven’t been easy here,” he began before he sighed. “Sorry. It’s been a long month. Let’s get you some food, and maybe you can tell us what it’s like out there.”

I nodded. “Sure.”

I fell in line behind him, but before I could take a step, Adeline shouldered past me, holding a black and very menacing shotgun, her blue hair tied in a messy ponytail.

“Hey, thanks for, you know, not blowing my head off.”

She glared at me and didn’t say a word as she caught up with the rest of the group, leaving me to play catch up.

I didn’t say anything and just followed them.

Damn, it’s like the first day of high school all over again, and I just went and pissed off the popular crowd.

Except now, everyone has guns.

With my personality, I think my life expectancy just plummeted.

They led me to the cafeteria, which was filled with about a dozen people sitting around the laminated plastic and metal lunch tables, eating off the ugly lime green lunch trays I’d come to despise during my time here. Though, from the smell of the food cooking, I might actually be able to get a better meal here, even though the world went to shit.

Mr. Mitchells brought me over to the counter, where a wide array of unappetizing meals would usually be arranged. Instead, there was a large pot of simmering meat in a sauce and about two metric tons of cooked white rice beside it.

Something on the counter caught my eye as we passed it. It was small and boxy. Shiny silver metal gleamed around it. Only the front was any different. There was a rectangular screen and a flashing green light next to it.

“What the hell is that, Mr. Mitchells?”

He sighed. “Call me Isaac. There’s no point in standing on formality anymore.” He looked at me sideways with squinted eyes. “And this is a vendor. Haven’t you seen one before?”

I shook my head.

“Oh, well. They’re dispensers. They show up at any place with enough people to warrant a classification. Since we’re just an Outpost, we only got one. This one is programmed for food, but I wouldn’t use your coins on it if I were you, not while we still have plenty in the freezer.”

He handed me a plate piled high with curry, at least I thought it was curry, and let me pick a table to sit at.

Not knowing anyone here besides Mitchells, I sat alone at an unoccupied table and took a tentative bite. The food was good, a little bland, but filling. I ate and tried to plan my next move.

But I didn’t really understand anything he’d just told me.

More than anything, I don’t have a clue what’s going on. I need more information before I do something as stupid as to try and destroy the world. The world looks pretty messed up as is. I don’t know what more I can do.

Let alone what’s happened since I’ve been gone.

I was interrupted from my thoughts by two trays slamming down beside me. Mr. Mitchells and Adeline sat down next to me.

Mr. Mitchells was as calm and friendly as ever, but Adeline set down a pistol next to her tray, the barrel pointing in my direction.

Yippee, she looks like she’s ready to take me out back and demand my lunch money or shoot me. One of the two.

I turned and glared at her. “You realize we had Calculus together, right?” I asked, my voice biting.

Her eyes narrowed, her lips forming a hard line. “That was a month ago. A lifetime ago.”

“Guess I can’t argue with that. But if you could not point a loaded firearm in my direction, I’d consider it a personal favor.”

“Don’t make any sudden moves, and you’ll be fine.”

I sighed. “I bet you’re just a riot at parties.” I shifted my focus to Mr. Mitchells, ignoring Adeline entirely. “What happened here? Where is everyone else?”

He sighed, pulled out a copper-colored hip flask, and took a swig. “Dead, or gone,” he said and stowed the flask back in his pocket. “It’s bad business all around. The first week wasn’t so bad. Pretty much everyone from the surrounding area took shelter at the school. It was easily defendable, and there was plenty of room and supplies to go around. When the military showed up, we thought the worst was over with.”

“Let me guess,” I said, pointing my fork at him. “They weren’t here to help.”

“Oh, no. They were. They brought more food and medical supplies than we knew what to do with. They set this place up with enough supplies to grant us the Outpost fortification. They were in the process of upgrading it further when those damn monsters showed up.”

I paused, my fork halfway in my mouth. “What monsters?” I asked around a mouthful of curry.

Adeline raised her eyebrows at that. “You don’t know? You’ve been out there all this time, yet you’re acting like this is the first time you’re hearing about all this.”

“Well, because it is…”

I tried to come up with a plausible way to explain how I time skipped a month into the future. I came up lacking in every regard and settled for a blatant lie.

“I bashed my head pretty hard a while ago. I’ve been in a coma since all this started.”

They looked at me with skepticism evident in their eyes but thankfully didn’t press me on the issue. I heaved a mental sigh of relief when they changed the subject.

Adeline stared at me, pushing a lump of meat around her plate. “So…what’s your class?” she asked before taking a drink of water.

I looked around the room, confused. “Class? This is the lunchroom.”

She slammed her bottle on the table, and the bottom crumpled a little, sending droplets of water over the table. “No, moron. What’s your class? You know, the weird fucking screen floating in front of your eyes. You have one, right? Everyone does.”

Oh, duh. Well, shit.

I can’t exactly freaking proclaim that I’m the Demon Lord sent out to destroy the world, now can I?

There’s absolutely no way that conversation goes anywhere but south for me.

“Uh, what’s yours?” I asked, trying to deflect the question.

“Gunner,” she said. “Most everyone got stuck with the Soldier class, but I’m one of the few here with a rare class.”

“According to the military, almost everyone got the Soldier class,” Mitchells said.

Well, thanks for the save there, Adeline. I forgive you for mistaking me for a shooting target earlier.

“Yeah, that’s what I got as well.” I shrugged. “Guess you got lucky.”

“Lucky?” She scoffed. “Yeah, the whole world goes to shit, but at least I get some cool parlor tricks.”

“Ah.” I shut up, not knowing what else to say.

“So, what’s your level? And stats?” she asked, changing the subject.

I sighed and set down my fork, pushing my tray away. “I’m only level one, and I have no idea how the stats even work.”

Adeline raised an eyebrow. “Level one? You really were in a coma then?”

I nodded. “What level are you?”

“Five.”

I grabbed my bottle of water and chugged half of it just for something to do.

All of this was crazy, and I was still playing catch up trying to process everything. Levels, skills, and stats. It was all so familiar to me, yet completely alien at the same time.

And on top of everything, I couldn’t be honest with anyone about who I was or what really happened to me, so playing mental gymnastics while trying to wrap my head around everything was giving me a serious headache.

The plastic crinkled as I dropped it back on the table and drummed my fingers along the vinyl. “So, I’m guessing levels work like they do in any video game. You earn experience for various actions, and you get points to put in stats?”

“That’s pretty much exactly right. Most of us earn experience by killing the monsters, but there are a few other ways to earn points in the form of quests,” Isaac said, interrupting whatever Adeline had been about to say.

“It really is like a game…so our attributes, how do they work?”

They cocked their heads at my words. “Attributes? What do you mean?”

“The whole Strength, Endurance, Wisdom thing. Those are called attributes in traditional tabletop games.”

Adeline scoffed. “Nerd.”

I couldn’t take her attitude toward me any longer and whirled on her. “Yeah, I’m a nerd, but when the fucking world turns into a game, how about not pissing off the gamer?”

She stood, her green eyes piercing as she stared me down. “A gamer who doesn’t know how to play the game isn’t a gamer. You’re just a liability.” She turned to Isaac and scoffed. “I don’t trust him. Coma? We’re really supposed to buy that?” She turned to me, glaring. “He’s hiding something.”

Adeline grabbed her tray and stormed off.

He sighed and took another drink from his flask. “You’ll have to forgive her, after everything…well, it’s becoming rather hard to trust people these days.

“But to answer your question, your stats work pretty simply. Raising your Strength increases your physical ability. Perception seems to increase your senses, and it goes from there. It’s been over twenty years since my gamer days, so I’m sure you know how these things work better than I.”

Huh. I leaned on my chin, my fingers tapping against my lip in thought. That’s about what I figured.

“What about Charisma? That’s the only one I can’t figure out.”

“Well, from what little we can see, it increases a person’s likability, but more than that. It gives a small increase in the amount of experience you get for completing quests.”

I whistled. “That’s kind of handy.”

Going by what I know, I’ll need to solidify my build before I ever allocate a single stat point. But I really don’t know what my class can do. Going by my single skill, I’m close quarters, but I can’t make an informed decision without knowing more.

I guess the best thing right now is to watch and wait until more info presents itself.

“If you’re finished eating, we can go to the gym, talk to everyone and see where you best fit in. You’re welcome to stay, but everyone pitches in for the good of the community here.”

I stood, grabbing my tray. “Absolutely, I’ll help howe─”

A man burst through the double doors of the cafeteria like there was a fire. Early to middle-aged with thick mahogany hair and a rugged beard. He held a hunting rifle and looked around till he spotted Isaac. “Incoming! Eight. Moving fast!”

Everyone leapt to their feet instantly, most heading for the door like well-oiled machines.

Only the two of us remained.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“We’ve got trouble coming. You asked about the monsters earlier. Well, you’re about to see them up close. C’mon, we need to move,” he said and headed for the door without looking back.

Shotgun toting high school girls and monsters.

What’s the world come to?

I pulled my pistol and raced after everyone.

Chapter 5- Carnival Beasts

All I had to do was follow the heavy thud of boots as nearly everyone fled the confines of the halls and headed outside. I took a left and followed a girl no older than me as she burst through the east entrance to the school’s football and track field.

Everyone gathered along the concrete walkway that split in several directions and led down to the stands and field.

I walked down and met up with Isaac and Adeline, who were a few dozen feet from the clay-colored rubber of the track field, crouched down behind a chest-high concrete wall that separated the field from the stands.

They had weapons in hand. Adeline had her shotgun, and she loaded a couple of shells before racking it. Isaac held a hunting rifle like he knew how to use it, and as I met them, he flicked the safety off and braced the gun on the wall, staring through the sight.

“Get ready. They’re here.”

“What’s here?” I hissed.

Adeline glared at me and took a hold of my shirt, pulling me down. “Stop standing there like a dumbass and get serious.” She grabbed my chin and forced my head in the direction of the football field. “Look. This is what we’ve had to deal with for the past month while you were asleep or whatever.”

My comeback died on my lips as I caught what the others were looking at.

In the distance, on the other end of the field, were eight hideous creatures.

Three of them crawled up the goal post and sat perched, giving me a better look. I couldn’t make out much from this distance, but they were long and lean quadrupedal monsters, six-foot or so and reptilian in appearance. All of them had scales and thin, pointed ridges down their slender bodies.

Each had a multitude of assorted colors. From gray with glittering white ridges along its back to a grassy green with bright red talons and spotted scales along its flank. All the same creatures, but each had a distinct color scheme to them.

“Holy shit,” I said.

I hadn’t spoken loudly, but as soon as I said anything, all three of them on the post turned in my direction and opened their long, narrow mouths. They bared several rows of vicious ivory teeth and let out horrendous half hissed shrieks.

I winced in pain as my ears rang from their screams. I shook my head, trying to chase the last of the ringing as the echoes faded.

That was from a football field away. Up close, and I’d have likely been knocked unconscious.

Isaac cursed and fired. The crack of his rifle sounded, and the shot took the green one in the shoulder. Bright yellow blood splattered across the ground, but the thing didn’t drop.

“What the hell are they?” I asked.

“Are you really this clueless?” Adeline asked, resting her shotgun on the concrete and drawing a pistol.

“No. I just like asking pointless questions for the hell of it!”

She leaned over the wall and fired three shots. Though from her expression, none of them hit.

“Do you not know how to inspect?”

“Not a clue.” I shook my head. “But if logic holds, I probably just have to think Inspect?”

As soon as I spoke, a screen flared to life in my vision when I stared at the creature that Isaac shot.

Monster (Low-Tier): Carnival Beast

Health: 75/150

Exp: 62

AC: 10

As the others opened fire on the beasts, they scrambled and sprinted towards us, weaving in chaos across the thin grass. The cacophony of gunfire chewed up the soft turf, sending tufts of grass and dirt clods flying as the bullets tore into the ground, missing their intended targets.

I only had five shots remaining, and with how agile they were, I didn’t have a chance in hell to hit them. I crouched low over the railing and aimed my gun but didn’t dare take a shot.

Adeline kept firing sporadically with her pistol, and Isaac dropped his hunting rifle and drew a pistol similar to Adeline’s, opening with four quick shots.

For the dozens of rounds being let off, one in ten landed, scoring only minor wounds.

A random bullet struck the gray-skinned beast as it veered away from the group. A streak of yellow splashed from its brain, and it dropped, lifelessly skidding to a halt just before the fifty-yard line.

The seven remaining Carnival Beasts split into separate directions with the death of one of theirs, speeding up as their long claws ripped into the soft earth.

When they got within range, Adeline holstered her pistol and drew her shotgun. She hopped over the concrete railing and shimmered for a split second, like a mirage. A translucent gun materialized, floating in midair next to her right shoulder.

I recognized the gun at once, even with my limited knowledge. It was an Uzi, one of the most iconic guns of all time. It fired off dozens of rounds while she let loose with the shotgun, peppering the closest Carnival Beast mercilessly.

It was riddled with more holes than flesh and poured its mustard-colored blood onto the grass in two seconds. It dropped and lay still.

Smoke coiled from the barrel of her shotgun, and the stench of blood and gunpowder filled the air, causing me to choke.

What the hell was that? A skill? That was badass!

Adeline smirked as she stood tall over her kill. Her shoulders were held back as she reloaded her shotgun with practiced efficiency.

Others followed her example and swept onto the field, guns raised as they went to battle with the beasts.

At that moment, I looked down at myself, hiding behind the wall while everyone else fought for their lives, and cursed.

Dammit all to hell, but I’d rather feel like a reckless idiot than a coward.

Fear in my guts, I forced a grim smile and hopped over the wall and entered the fray of combat.

Gunfire echoed through the stands, rivaled only by the shouts of Grissom’s survivors.

I searched for Isaac and found him covering Adeline as she reloaded her shotgun. She aimed at a blue-skinned beast as it jumped side to side as she fired. She shot twice and missed before firing once more, scoring a glancing hit along its side. But her next shot clicked empty, and the Carnival Beast leapt at her with its razor-sharp claws.

Her summoned Uzi aimed at the beast, but something happened, and the floating gun vanished, leaving her with just an empty shotgun.

I raised my pistol and fired.

My first round missed, going just overhead, and I lowered my aim, firing twice more. Bright red numbers flashed over the creature as my second and third rounds hit its neck and head, bursting through its thin skull and sending droplets of too colorful blood across the ground as it died.

Adeline turned and stared at me for a second before inclining her head. “Thanks.”

A Carnival Beast hit her from the side and took her to the ground.

Before it could feast on her blood, I reached her. I didn’t aim, just placed the barrel of the revolver against its scaled head.

Its eyes flicked to mine and held me there, mesmerized.

They were a kaleidoscope of colors. Nearly every hue of the rainbow swirled like water down a drain.

It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen in my life, and I couldn’t look away.

The beast paid me no mind and turned back to its meal, and I just stood there and stared, mouth agape while it opened its jaws wide to let its thick purple tongue spill out. Jagged ivory teeth were poised to sink into Adeline, and I couldn’t do a damn thing.

Adeline struggled to keep her gun between it and her as she shot her leg out, kicking me. “Killian! Snap out of it!”

I jolted back to my senses and jammed my revolver into its eye and pulled the trigger.

The round shattered its skull and drenched the both of us in warm, sticky yellowed blood. The word critical flashed in giant red letters over its head, along with a number that hit triple digits.

As it faded, a spray of blood flicked across my face and into my mouth. The blood was hot and sweet, almost like syrup. It still disgusted me, and I spat it out before helping Adeline out from under the beast’s carcass.

The others had taken down most of the other beasts and were grouped together, fending off the last one. It was injured and bleeding but was still standing, dancing nimbly around the gunfire. Even though nearly a dozen people were fighting, only two or three were still using guns. The others had picked up melee weapons, all of which looked to be looted from the gym supply closet. Baseball bats and golf clubs aplenty.

One guy had an actual calvary sable that looked to belong in the Civil War era.

Ammo must be running low. I’ve only got one more shot left myself.

I ran over to the fight as the others prodded the thing with their bats, but each time they got close, the beast swiped at them with its claws. One landed on a bat and splintered it in two.

By the time I got there, it had killed one survivor. Four long, jagged claw marks just under his chest spilled out red and gray intestines, and the man’s eyes had already glassed over.

I checked to make sure no one was in my line of fire and put my last shot into it. The round took the beast where its ribs should’ve been. Gore dripped from the ragged hole I made, and it hissed in pain and rage.

The Carnival Beast knew it was wounded and that I was the culprit. It prioritized me and let out a horrendous, debilitating shriek. Nearly all the others dropped to the ground as small lines of blood snaked from their ears.

It rolled me under with a wave of nausea, and I nearly lost consciousness. It stunned me enough that I dropped the revolver and couldn’t react quick enough when the beast lunged at me.

The Carnival Beast hit me like a freight train, and I dropped to the ground under its weight. It was lighter than I expected from such a monster, but more than heavy enough to pin me in place. Its thick, dank breath rushed hot over my face as it leaned down to devour me, though it seemed to savor the thrill of the kill.

A mistake that gave me half a second to think.

Revolver. Gone. I need a weapon. Think! C’mon, you’re skilled at critical thinking.

Skill? You have a skill. Use it, idiot!

Demon Claws!

I all but shouted the word in my head, and a rush swept through me along with a nascent draining sensation, like some of my energy flowed out of my chest and into my palms.

My hands were weightier, unwieldy. I brought them up and found a disturbing sight. They’d elongated, turning into wicked points. The entirety of my hands up to my wrists looked like I’d dipped them in pitch-black tar.

I did the only thing I could think of and shoved them into the Carnival Beast's mouth. Ten spikes rammed through its skull and into its brain, shattering the light in its eyes. It dropped lifelessly onto my chest, pinning me to the ground.

I couldn’t move very well with its weight on me, so I resorted to using my new claws and ripped the thing in half. Its head tore in two with little protest and allowed me to move enough to shake myself free.

As I stood, silence stretched around the field and a notification popped into existence in front of me.

Combat Results!

3 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 186 Exp!

Total Gain: 186 Exp!

AC Earned: 30!

Level Up!

Oh, that’s rather handy.

I glanced down and groaned. The beast’s blood soaked into nearly every inch of my clothes and skin, leaving me a disgusting mess, but an elated to be alive disgusting mess.

Dealing with my level up can wait until after I’m clean. Though a set of ruined clothing is well worth my life…but this was one of my favorite shirts. I kicked the beast’s carcass. No one ruins a jazz icon like Coltrane and gets away with it.

I brushed what blood stuck to my hand on my already bloody jeans and rose.

Adeline stood beside me.

“We didn’t make a bad team there,” I said.

She said nothing. She just looked at me, eyes wide.

Footsteps interrupted me from asking why. They squelched loudly as someone stepped into a thick mess of yellow blood. The others roused themselves and headed over to us.

Isaac knelt in the grass, blood leaking from his ears as he shook off the effects of the shriek.

I offered him my hand to help him stand, completely forgetting that I still had Demon Claws active and that my hands looked like the bastard love child of Edward Scissorhands and a pit of primordial ooze.

Isaac reached up to take my hand. Then reality caught up to him, and he stopped and stared.

“Killian…what is that?” he asked.

His tone of voice caused the others to take note as well, and pretty much everyone stared at me with a mixture of confusion and disgust.

“Uh, it’s just my skill. Speaking of, how do I turn off skills?”

“Just think off, and it should deactivate,” he said slowly, his eyes never leaving mine.

Off.

As soon as I thought it, my hands returned to normal. The odd pull of energy in my chest went away and left me drained.

“Thank you,” I said and offered him my normal hand to take.

Which he just stared at until I dropped it, and he stood on his own. Adeline walked over to stand by Isaac, glaring at me with open hostility.

Ah, so I save her life, and my reward is distrust and fear. Yeah, that checks. At least my luck is still shit.

“What the hell was that?” Adeline asked. “That ain’t no Soldier skill, that’s for damn sure.”

“Adeline is right, Killian. No Soldier can do what you just did. So why don’t you tell us why you lied to us.”

She eyed me up and down, crossing her arms. “I told you he was hiding something.”

I sighed.

Guess the jig is up.

“Look, I promise I’ll explain everything,” I said, gesturing at my soiled and soaking clothes. “But can I get cleaned up first? This stuff is starting to dry.”

Adeline jabbed a finger at my chest. “Like hell, you’re not going anywhere until we get some answers.”

“It’s a long story, and you realize that you’re just as filthy as I am, right? Do you really want that thing's blood to crust in your hair?” I asked.

She glanced down at herself and then back up. Her eyes still held her suspicious glare, but now she’d added discomfort to them.

Can’t blame her on that one. I’ve got blood in every nook and cranny right now, and I can only imagine how she feels.

Isaac nodded at Adeline and me. “That’s fine. You helped us now, and I trust you, Killian. But I expect some answers when you finish.”

“Of course,” I said, and bent down to pick up my revolver.

It was thankfully spared the onslaught of vileness from the monster’s blood, and I was about to pocket it when Isaac held out his hand.

“Give it here,” he said.

“I thought you trusted me?”

“I do, and if you trust me, then you know I’ll give it back to you when you explain yourself.”

With no room for argument, I handed the gun over. “It’s empty anyway.”

Without another word, I headed for the gym showers.

The gymnasium was a separate building from the main campus. It was newer than the others because of some generous donation by a wealthy community member. So it was far nicer inside than the school itself.

The basketball court was still shiny and lacquered despite the apocalypse, though the bleachers were all retracted to allow room for a makeshift hotel. Dozens of beds lined the walls. From the cots in the nurse’s office to beds that looked like they belonged in someone’s home to yoga mats on the floor, all huddled close together.

The men’s room was the closest to the door, so I headed in alone, or so I thought, and nearly jumped out of my skin when the door thumped open behind me and Adeline walked in.

“Uh…what are you doing?” I asked, my shirt halfway over my head.

“Taking a shower. What does it look like?” she replied.

“Yes, but this is the men’s room,” I nearly shouted at her.

She gave me a dark smile and chuckled. “You just fought apocalyptic monstrosities, but showering in the same room as a girl freaks you out?”

“Apocalyptic monstrosities won’t shoot me for seeing them naked.”

Adeline snorted and turned around, taking her shirt off. “Oh, I’ll shoot you for a whole lot less than catching a peek, so best keep them eyes up.”

I snorted. “I’m good. The whole covered in a metric ton of monster blood really has a way of ruining any and all sex appeal.”

She just laughed as the shower curtain rattled, and I heaved a mental sigh of relief as I finished climbing out of my ruined clothes and got into the shower.

There were what looked like small bottles of shampoo and conditioner that you’d find in hotels, along with a bar of soap. I turned the water on and found, to my surprise, that it was hot.

“I wasn’t expecting hot water,” I said to myself, but my voice carried off the tile.

“Yeah, the gas lines are all still connected, and I guess no one bothered to turn them off before fleeing for their lives. So lucky us. Power still works too,” Adeline said from the next stall over.

I didn’t bother replying and set about cleaning every inch of blood and gunk off me. A sickly yellow flowed down the drain. As I was washing my hair for the third time, Adeline spoke.

“So, what’s your deal, Killian, huh? Why the lies? Because no way in hell do I buy your bullshit ‘coma’ excuse.”

“When did this become kindergarten share hour? Sorry, but I’m not holding the sharing stick.”

Flesh struck tile and reverberated into my stall. “Answer the fucking question!”

“I will…soon as I figure out how.”

“What do you mean?”

“Look, it’s complicated, okay? I don’t have an easy way to explain everything that doesn’t make me sound batshit insane.”

Adeline chuckled. “This whole world is batshit these days. Trust me. Whatever your story is, it’s not any crazier than what we’ve had to deal with this past month.”

“I’m not so sure,” I said and then lapsed into silence.

There was too much to say, but I didn’t know how to say any of it.

I’m the Demon Lord. The person whose job is to end the world.

There isn’t a right way to say that. And my lie about being a Soldier fell apart the moment I used my skill. I could lie again, make up a class, I guess. But after my first lie, why would they believe another?

No. There’s no way I can conceal the truth from them.

Which left me completely screwed.

There was a lot I still had to figure out. And after I was clean, I stood under the water for a long moment.

I should probably check my Mantle.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Level: 2

Exp: 21/215

15 Stat Points Available!

Guess I can’t really ignore my build now, can I? I’m going to need those points just to survive.

I still didn’t know much about my class or what it could do, but I figured I’d start with the basics and work my way up. And if I was going to keep getting into fights with monsters, the first thing I needed was more health.

No respawns in real life. Health will keep me alive, which is a good start. But I can’t just dump all my stats into Constitution. I need to figure out where else they should go.

My only skill scaled with Strength, which was also boosted by my Soul of the Demon Lord or whatever it was. So, it stood to reason that I should invest some points into it as well.

After I deliberated for a minute, I put ten points into Constitution and five into Strength.

Stat Page

Strength: 15

Constitution: 10

Perception: 0

Endurance: 0

Agility: 0

Wisdom: 10

Charisma: 0

As I confirmed my selection, a new screen appeared.

Health: 300/300

Ah, so I have a health bar. Good to know, I guess.

With my selection confirmed, I smiled, confident that I’d made the right choice.

Until I have more information regarding my class, I think playing it safe is my best bet.

I had a thought.

“Hey, Adeline, when I inspected that thing, there was a notification that said AC. What is that?”

“Why should I tell you?”

“Because I’m asking nicely. I’ll even add pretty please with a cherry on top if it makes you happy.”

She snorted but didn’t say anything for a long moment.

“They’re Apocalypse Coins, the single most valuable currency in this hellscape of a world. They’re used at the vendors to purchase items, though the only one we have produces food, so it’s not much use.”

“So, you get them by killing monsters?”

“Yep. And questing, though you can also transfer coins to others so they can be used to trade. They’re actually pretty nifty since they stay in your Mantle. It beats carrying a wallet around everywhere.”

“Yeah, the world’s gone to hell, but thank God we don’t have to lug around a piece of leather in our pockets.”

She laughed. “Smartass.”

“Better than being a dumbass.”

After that, we didn’t speak. I stayed under the water for a bit longer, but my fingers started to prune, so I turned off the shower and stepped out.

There was a towel and fresh clothes on the wooden bench in front of me.

I didn’t hear the door open because I was so absorbed with my shower. My lack of situational awareness might get me killed if I don’t work on it.

I dried off and got dressed.

Whoever picked out my clothes had a decent eye for size, and while nothing fit perfectly, it did all fit.

And apparently, they wanted me to look like the outcast emo kid that everyone always thought I was because everything was in shades of black.

On top were a plain black T-shirt and black military-style pants that looked easy to move in and durable as hell. My boots were still good. All they needed was a good scrub, but my jacket was finished. Yellow blood had sunk in and dried, and I wrote it off as a lost cause. The survivors were kind enough to find me a replacement—a thin jacket made of black corduroy with faux fur around the collar.

I donned my clothes, buttoned the jacket, and left, stepping around Adeline, who’d dressed in similar attire. A dark flannel button-up and gray denim jeans, but she’d obviously brought clothes from home, as they hugged her body far too well to be borrowed.

That or she’s one of those girls that makes everything she wears look good.

We headed out, and Adeline led me back to the main building.

Everyone was in the cafeteria, which seemed to be the general hang-out spot for the survivors. A few were eating, but most were cleaning and maintaining their guns and gear. I noticed several disassembled automatics on the tables, but everyone had a backup weapon close by.

I went over and sat by Isaac. He seemed to be the leader of the group and was seated almost dead center in the room. He looked up from his book as I approached and sat down. Closing the book and setting it down, he gave me his full attention.

“Now, Killian. I’m thrilled to see you alive and well, and I must thank you again for your part in the fight. If things were any different, I’d offer to buy you a beer and celebrate, but these are dark times, and we can’t afford secrets. Not anymore.”

“That puts us in a bind, then,” I said.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and craned their necks, listening in on our conversation. Adeline leaned on one of the white support pillars in the room and didn’t look at us but was clearly eavesdropping.

“Look, I know I lied to you, but you have to understand this is all still so confusing for me. Yesterday the world was a normal, sane place, and now it’s like this.”

Isaac leaned up and propped his hand under his chin. “So that was the truth? You really were in a coma?”

I shook my head. “No, that part was a lie. It’s more like time sped up for everyone but me. To me, it’s only been a few hours since all this started, not a month.”

“I’d say that’s impossible, but given all we’ve seen, I’m inclined to believe you. But the question remains. How?”

Well, here’s where they laugh at me and throw me in the looney bin.

“A god. He appeared in my room and spoke to me.”

Dead silence stretched for several long seconds before it was broken by Adeline scoffing.

“Bullshit. Why would Callisto speak to you?”

I looked up with a snap. “You know about Callisto?”

“Of course we do,” Adeline said. “Who do you think explained how all this shit works? The freaky Mantles and all the other game mechanics. He gets in your head and can speak to everyone all at once.”

Ah, so everyone else got the CliffsNotes, and I have to learn the hard way. Thanks again, Callisto!

“Well, that takes care of the most unbelievable portion of my story.”

“What about your class?” Isaac asked.

“Yeah, those claws of yours are really freaky.”

“I can’t tell you.”

His eyes narrowed. “And why not?”

I sighed. “I just can’t.”

Isaac shook his head, placing his palms flat on the table. “You’re putting me in a rather difficult situation here, Killian. I want to help you, but if you want to be a part of this community, you have to be honest with us.”

No. There was never a chance of that. I was never going to be able to stay.

I glanced up and met my former teacher’s eyes. “My answer isn’t going to change. I’m sorry.”

Hurt crossed his eyes, and he pleaded with me to just answer him, but my resolve wasn’t going to waver, and he knew that.

Isaac blew out a breath and turned to the others. “Can you give us the room, please?”

The people around the room started muttering before nodding, getting up, and taking their guns with them.

Adeline lingered, still leaning against the pillar.

“Adeline. Please.”

She glanced at me and then back at Isaac. “Are you sure that’s wise?”

“It’s Killian.” He nodded. “I’m sure.”

She sighed and shrugged. “Alright. I’m going to go scout. Can I borrow your rifle?”

“Of course.”

Adeline snagged the hunting rifle and slung it over her shoulder as she headed for the doors. With one last glance back, she left, and then we were alone in the cafeteria.

Isaac shook his head, pulling out his flask and taking a drink. When he was done, he folded his arms on the table and looked at me.

“Alright, Killian. It’s just us now. We can talk freely here.”

There was no way I would ever have told the others. That would have ended in disaster, but Mr. Mitchells was different. I’d known him for years. Trusted him.

And if there was anyone that would understand, it would be him.

More than that. I wanted to talk to someone, anyone. I hadn’t had a chance to really sit down and process anything yet, and I needed to vent.

But this was a big secret.

“I don’t know.” I sighed. “I want to, but I just don’t know how you’ll react.”

“Only one way to find out.” He smiled. “C’mon, Killian. It’s me. Talk to me.”

I nodded. “Fine.”

He took another drink. “So, tell me about your class? And that skill of yours?”

“The skill is called Demon Claws,” I said, scratching the back of my head. “And…my class is Demon Lord.”

Chapter 6- Vicious Pieces

Isaac sucked in a breath and went pale. He stared at me like I’d grown three heads. With shaky hands, he reached for his flask, but as his hand touched it, he knocked it over, sending droplets of whiskey spilling out.

Isaac met my eyes and begged me with them. “Killian, that’s not a funny joke. You shouldn’t make light of such darkness.”

I sighed. “It’s the truth, much as I wish otherwise.”

Isaac had a very forlorn expression on his face, like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. He picked up the flask and took a long pull. When he finished, he dropped it into a pocket and hung his head, rubbing at his eyelids.

“How do you even know about the Demon Lord?” I asked.

He looked back up, mouth open but at a loss for words. He didn’t answer, and instead shook his head.

After a moment of silence, he finally spoke in a whisper. “How could you, Killian? You know what the Demon Lord has to do, right?”

“Of course I do! You think I wanted this?”

Isaac sat back. The vinyl seat creaked as he pulled out his copper flask once again and drained it in one long gulp. When it was dry, he went to put it back in his pocket and cursed, throwing it across the cafeteria.

He turned to me, pain in his eyes. “You’re going to destroy the world, Killian?”

“Not like I want to, but I don’t have a choice.”

At that, he just stared at me for a very long time. Conflict, rage, regret, and a slew of other emotions crossed his face, and he gripped the edge of the table hard enough for his knuckles to turn white. He didn’t say anything for several minutes, and when he finally did, his voice was haunted.

“Neither do I,” he said, sighing.

“What do you mean?”

Isaac stood, placing his hands on the table as he refused to look at me. “I’ve known you for years, and I wish to God I could forget what you just told me.” He shrugged. “But I can’t. And you can’t stay here. You need to go, Killian. Right now.”

He looked at me, and through all the other emotions on his face, there was something in his eyes I never thought I’d see. Disgust.

“I can’t protect you, even if I wanted to. We can’t be a part of this. I’m sorry, but you need to leave before anyone else gets wind of this. They’ll kill you if they find out. As I should, right now.”

I raised my hand, but his words hit me like a fist in the gut, and I paused, my hand hanging in the air. “I…” My words died in my throat as my chest tightened and my eyes burned.

I sighed, trying to say something, anything.

But I couldn’t.

In the back of my mind, I knew that I could never have stayed in the first place. I had a job to do, and I knew that my time at the school was only temporary when I arrived.

My mission was to destroy the world, and to do that, I had to level up. I couldn’t do that from behind safe walls.

So, I knew I’d have to leave.

But leaving voluntarily was one thing. Getting thrown out was another.

And the look of rage and distrust in the eyes of someone I looked up to and respected?

I couldn’t deny that it hurt like hell.

There was only one thing I had to say, one thing I could say.

“Yeah. I know.”

He turned from me and waved me forward. “Come on. Let’s grab your things. Quickly. Before I change my mind.”

Isaac escorted me down the hall to an empty classroom by the entrance of the school. Laying on top of the wooden teacher’s desk by the chalkboard was my bag of supplies I’d brought with me from my house.

He ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. “Damn it all. Stay here for a second. I’ll be right back.”

And then he was gone, leaving me alone with my stuff.

I walked over to the desk and grabbed my messenger bag, slinging it over my shoulder. I double-checked the supplies and made sure nothing was missing or added.

Everything was how I’d left it.

Isaac returned a minute later with a small nylon pack and my revolver in his hands. “I don’t know what I’m doing. But here. I got you a box of ammo and some ration bars. It’s all I could grab without people noticing.”

I couldn’t help but smile. Even after everything, it seemed that he hadn’t given up on me entirely.

He handed the pack to me, and I stored it in my bag before putting the pistol in my pocket. “Thank you, Mr. Mitchells,” I said, my voice tight.

“Don’t thank me. I’m still sending you to your death out there. But I don’t have a choice.” He sighed. “You’re a smart kid, Killian. Always have been. So, you must have a good reason for doing what you did. But we just can’t be a part of it.

“I’m sorry, but you have to leave now. And you can’t come back. Not ever.”

“I know.”

Isaac nodded. “Goodbye, Killian.” He turned, and with a final glance, left.

And then I was alone.

I checked the resource tab to catalog all that I’d acquired.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 30 Coins

Food: 4 Day’s Supply

Water: 2 Day’s Supply

Ammo

.38 Special: 25 Rounds

Additional Items

First Aid Kit (Low Grade)

It’s not much, but it's more than I started with.

Guess it’s time.

Barely four hours into the apocalypse and I’d already lost the trust and support of someone I respected most.

Off to a great start there, Killian.

I sighed, shaking my head as I shouldered my bag and reloaded my revolver. The fact was that I was about to walk out into an unknown world. But staying in the school where it was safe wouldn’t bring my family back or help me get stronger.

If I was going to do this, I had to leave, start killing monsters, and taking quests.

And there was only one place I knew would satisfy both goals at the same time.

Grissom City.

With my heart in my boots, I stepped out into the frigid night air. The sun had set only an hour ago, but already the chill was enough to catch in my chest.

But the city can wait until tomorrow. I need to find shelter for the night first. And quickly.

My house was only minutes away, but it didn’t feel right going back there. I knew I couldn’t go home until this was all over.

All right, I guess it’s time for a little breaking and entering.

My first crime as the Demon Lord.

I turned to the city and started walking as snow began falling.

My jacket did little to keep me warm, and my pace was slow going as I tried to work through my plan for when I reached the city. I passed several looted houses and just kept going—the broken doors and windows offering nothing but freezing temperatures and lack of safety.

After about five minutes of walking, I took a turn and went down a neighborhood with much lighter signs of looting. Most of the houses had intact doors and windows and looked decently suitable.

I was busy trying to choose the right house and was so absorbed with my thoughts that I didn’t know I was being followed until the frigid barrel of a gun pressed in between my shoulder blades.

“Ah, hell.”

I glanced back to a shock of blue hair fluttering about in the breeze. “If you’re going to shoot me, Adeline, get it over with.”

“So eager to die?”

“Beats standing around in the middle of a snowstorm.” I sighed. “What are you doing out here?”

“You left. In a hurry too. Fled the safety of the school into the apocalypse. In the dark, no less. Why? What was so awful that you had to leave? I want answers.”

“Are you going to kill me if I don’t?”

The gun jabbed harder into my back. “Not until I get the truth out of you. About everything.”

Since she said she wasn’t going to shoot me, I turned around to face her.

Adeline kept her gun on me, her eyes narrowed.

The temperature dropped with each passing moment, and it was too cold to be standing out in the open talking. Her cheeks were red from the windchill, and I doubted mine were any better.

“Look, if we’re going to have this discussion, let’s not do it out in the cold,” I said, as I walked to the closest house and began up the driveway.

“Stop!” Adeline shouted. “You’re not going anywhere until you answer me.”

“No, right now, I’m getting out of this cold, and you already said you weren’t going to kill me, remember?”

“Doesn’t mean I won’t shoot you in the leg.”

“Yeah,” I said, looking over my shoulder at her. “But then you have to carry me back in the cold, and I’d be screaming and bleeding all over the place. It’d be a giant pain in the ass for both of us.

“Besides, I’m not running away, just getting out of the cold for a minute.”

Without another word, I turned back to the house, half expecting gunfire and a ruined leg, but Adeline surprised me by not shooting. She fought a scream, hissing through her teeth as she stomped her way up the grass behind me.

The house was a modest two-story with cream paneling and a wooden wraparound porch. The elegant solid oak door was half darkened glass, etched in several geometric shapes. It was pretty, but it made breaking in a snap when I tried the doorknob and found it locked. I grabbed a rock from the dead garden just off the porch and smashed the glass.

I chuckled to myself as I kicked the shards out of the way. They tinkled across the wood to rest under a wicker rocking chair.

“What’s so funny?” Adeline asked from the porch steps.

“Just my life now. If you’d have told me I was casually breaking into a house a week ago, I’d have laughed in your face, and yet here we are.”

“Not for long,” she replied, pushing past me. “Just till we warm up, and then you’re going to start talking.”

I followed her inside. The house was clean, a quaint mixture of modern and rustic furniture over natural hardwood flooring. The leather couch looked inviting, and I went over and plopped down while Adeline pulled her gun.

“Holy fuck, I should just let you wander off if you’re not even going to check that the house is clear before sitting your ass down and making yourself at home. You’ll be dead in a day.”

Shame slid into my cheeks as I realized she was right. And worse, that I should’ve known better.

Has the situation really not sunk into your thick skull yet?

“You’re right. That was careless of me.”

I stood and drew my revolver and nodded to the stairs. You take the upstairs, I take downstairs?”

She shook her head with a smile. “And let you slip out while I’m upstairs, I don’t think so.”

I laughed. “Hadn’t even crossed my mind.”

“Sure.”

Adeline pointed her gun at the stairs and motioned for me to get on with it. I raised my gun and quickly checked through the rooms. A boy’s room, a girl’s room, and a shared bathroom were all empty.

Adeline was back in the living room by the time I got back downstairs, seated at the couch, gun in hand, feet propped up on the expensive-looking glass coffee table.

“Start talking,” she said, stating it as fact.

“No, I don’t think I will,” I said, sitting on the love seat across from her, leaning back and propping a leg on my knee. “I don’t owe you a damn thing. And I’ve already been exiled from the school. So the way I see it, you have no right to my answers.”

Adeline glared at me as her hand shook. “Do you want me to tell you what I think? I remember you. Always mouthing off. To anyone. It didn’t matter if they’d kick your ass or not. Always quick with that wit of yours, and enough fearlessness to stand up for yourself, even when all it earned you was a beating.

“So for you to clam up means it’s something big.” She tapped a finger to her lips, her emerald eyes boring a hole into me. “And you mentioned Callisto. That he visited you. Spoke to you.” Her gaze narrowed. “That makes you someone important. With those evil-looking claws of yours, there’s only one thing I can think of.”

Adeline leveled her gun at my head and thumbed the hammer back. “You’re the Demon Lord. Aren’t you?”

I sucked in a breath and quickly tried to cover it, but Adeline couldn’t fail to miss it.

“I’m right, aren’t I?”

I shrugged. “I asked Isaac, but he never gave me an answer. How is it that you even know about the Demon Lord in the first place?”

“Callisto told all of us,” Adeline said. She leaned up from the couch, keeping her gun aimed at my skull. “When all this shit started, he told us the rules of the game. Told us we had a choice to make, that we had to pick between two sides, White or Black. Like some demented game of chess.”

“What side did you choose?” I asked, staring at her.

“We didn’t choose at all,” she said. “We became sideless while we waited to see how things went.” She smirked. “Gotta say, though. You’re a little wimpy for the supposed Harbinger of the Apocalypse.”

I chuckled softly, careful not to raise my voice or shout. “Give me a break. It’s my first day. Not like I wanted the job in the first place.”

“Then why?” she asked.

A fire burned in my throat at the thought, and I fought to keep my voice calm. “Callisto has my family, my friends. Everyone I’ve ever cared about. If I didn’t agree to play his game, I’d never see them again.”

Adeline scoffed as she sneered at me. “So, what? You chose the lives of your family over the entire world?”

I stood before my brain could tell me what a stupid idea that was. I was in her face before I realized it. “You get put in my position and then judge me!”

Before I could blink, cold, hard metal pressed under my chin. Adeline gave me a grim smile. “Maybe I just do the whole world a favor and end you right now. Would be so easy.”

She forced the pistol against my skin, pushing my head back as I waited for her to pull the trigger.

“Is it?” I whispered. “Do it, then. Though I saved your life today. Killing me seems like a lousy way to repay that.”

She scoffed, the barrel pressing harder into my chin. Then she surprised me by stepping back, and I dropped back onto the couch.

“What the hell else am I supposed to do? Just let you walk? You’re the Demon Lord!”

I nodded. “But that’s not the only thing I am. And you don’t know the whole story.”

Adeline stopped pacing and just stared at me. “Then spill. Tell me everything.”

“Alright.”

I explained to her the conditions of the game that Callisto had offered me. The fact that I had to destroy the world, but if I completed my task, I’d be given a wish and could put the world back to the way it was. From the skepticism on her face, I could tell she didn’t believe me, but it was the only thing I had left to offer her.

Well, there is one thing, but it’s even more of a gamble than telling the truth.

I took a chance and risked it.

“You could always come with me,” I said.

Her eyes went wide as she processed what I’d said. “Go with you? Why the hell would I do that?”

I shrugged. “I dunno. Seems better than you holed up in the school, fighting for your life with dwindling supplies. Sooner or later, you’ll run out and be forced to leave anyway. If you think I’m so dangerous, why not come with me, watch my back and keep me out of trouble?”

She considered it for half a second. Somewhere, deep in her eyes, I thought she would enjoy doing just that. But her rational mind took over.

“Go to he─”

“You really should consider the offer,” a soft voice chimed in.

We both turned towards the source of the sound to find Callisto stretched out on the love seat like he’d been there all along.

“Who the hell are you?” Adeline asked.

Callisto smiled and introduced himself. “My name is Callisto, God of Chaos and Mischief, at your service.”

She just pointed at him and looked at me. “Callisto’s a kid?”

“Yep.”

“So why should I join him? Why not kill him right now and save the world?”

Callisto disappeared in an instant and reappeared, standing before Adeline. Even though he was shorter than her, her face went ghost white as she looked into his sunburst eyes. “Because I would pluck you from this world before you could pull the trigger, and I would send an army of my pets to destroy your friends at the school out of spite.”

Adeline fell to her knees as if her legs were made of Jell-O, and she stared in shock at the child god. “You…you wouldn’t,” she stammered.

“I will if you try to ruin my fun,” he said as he vanished and draped himself back on the love seat. “Besides, there are a few benefits to agreeing to join Killian.”

“Like what?” she asked as she picked herself up off the ground and sat beside me.

“Well, for one, I promise I’ll spare the rest of those souls in the school. As long as they stay on the school grounds, they’ll be safe from attack. And there’s plenty of perks to becoming one of Killian’s Pieces. Not least of which is a new class.”

“My what now?” I interjected. “What do you mean?”

Callisto hopped up from the couch and padded across the floor to sit on the table in front of us. “I was going to save this until you got a little more well-adjusted and had some levels under your belt. But I didn’t expect you to find a potential ally so soon,” he said, holding out his hand.

A black leather-bound briefcase appeared before us, and Callisto grabbed it by the handle and held it out to me. With a nod from him to open it, I unlatched the golden locks. Inside, nestled in secure foam placements, were two rows of eight.

Each slot but one held a single chess piece—all of them a solid glossy black. I picked one up out of curiosity, and as soon as I touched it and held it in my hand, it glowed as numerous lights flickered to life and formed a swirling galaxy in the center.

Out of the sixteen slots, only fifteen were present.

The king was missing.

Now that I think about it, in the parentheses next to Demon Lord, didn’t it say king?

So, I’m the king?

“What do I do with these?” I asked.

“You give them to your allies. They’re your vicious pieces, and they’ll help you in your fight against the White.”

“My fight against the who now? You never mentioned anything about fighting anyone.”

“Well, of course. If you’re set to destroy the world, there must be someone in place to stop you. As the Demon Lord, your natural enemy is the Archangel and their righteous pieces.”

I closed the case and stood. “What if I don’t want to fight?”

“Then that would make for very boring entertainment, and who knows what would happen to your family and friends.”

“Fine, I get it. No need to get nasty,” I said, setting down the case. I turned to Adeline. “So, how about it? Care to join me?”

She held up a hand. “I’m thinking, gimme a damn minute,” she said before growing quiet.

I walked over and sat on the floor next to Callisto and leaned back against the table leg. “So, you’ve dropped me into the thick of things without even a whisper of what I’m supposed to do. You told me to destroy the world, but I don’t have the first clue on how to go about it.”

Callisto smiled down at me. “I told you before. You want to play games with me, that’s fine, but you have to suffer the consequences if you choose not to burn one of your favors.

“Besides, I already gave you all the help you need. Don’t forget what I told you at the start. Work on leveling up. There’s a few potent skills that will come in handy in guiding you.”

I waved him off. “Not even a hint about where I should put my stats.”

“That’s for you to decide." He paused and looked over at me with a bemused grin. "But I’ll give you a single piece of free advice. You could stand to be a little wiser.”

“Haha. Funny.”

He might be an ass, but the first rank of the demon soul gave a boost to my Wisdom, so that might’ve just been a backhanded way of telling me exactly what I should focus on.

I looked over at Adeline, who was still lost in thought and stayed that way for another minute or two while working through her options. She paused and turned to Callisto.

“I want your word that not only will my friends not be harmed, but that they can continue to get everything they need to thrive at the school. Food, clothing, supplies—all of it. You’re a god. Magic up those things regularly for them.”

Callisto laughed loudly, his suns bathing the room in a soft orange glow. “You’ve got the nerve to make demands of a god? Bold of you.” He looked at me and chuckled. “Is all of your generation so demanding?”

I laughed. “We’ve just been through enough shit that we know a conman when we see one.”

“Well, Callisto? I’m waiting,” she said.

“Oh, you’re going to be a handful for Killian to deal with. But lucky for you, I’m in a generous mood. How about this? I upgrade your little school from an Outpost to a Hardened Outpost so it can activate its safe zone, and I’ll give them a couple thousand coins to get by for a few months.”

Her face scrunched like she’d tasted something sour. She folded her arms under her chest. “Not good enough. I want them taken care of for good or no deal.”

He grumbled but nodded. “Fine. Fine. The other incarnations are going to start calling me a pushover, but whatever. It’s fine.” He snapped his fingers and grinned. “It’s done.”

Adeline blinked like she didn’t think he was going to agree to it. She scowled, stowing her gun away before crossing her arms. “Fine, I’ll join you. But this doesn’t change things between us. I’m only doing this to help my friends. That’s it. And don’t think for a second that I’ll let you get away with whatever you have planned for this world. Got it?”

“Excellent, I get a trigger-happy hipster who hates my guts as a traveling companion. But wait, it’s not my birthday.”

“Yeah, keep up the smartass comments and I’ll punch you.”

I laughed. “Best warm up your knuckles, then. Even the apocalypse isn’t enough for me to keep my mouth shut,” I said, standing and offering her my hand.

She took it with a frown, but a glimmer of excitement rose in her eyes.

“Glad to have you on the team,” I said, smiling at her.

“Go fuck yourself.”

“Maybe when the pervy god’s no longer watching, definitely not now, though.”

Adeline laughed and then shook her head, sighing. “What did I just get myself into?”

“Adventure, excitement, and about an eighty percent chance of dying a horribly gruesome death.” I turned to Callisto and opened the briefcase. “What piece should I give her?”

He looked from her to the case for a second and picked up the knight. “Might I recommend the Revenant Piece? It would suit her well, I think.”

“That works─”

“Oh no,” she began, stalking over to the briefcase. “If I’m doing this, I’m your Queen. Nothing less.”

I shrugged. “Fine by me. If that’s what it takes to get you on my side, then it’s worth it.”

Callisto gave me a sidelong glance. “Are you sure about that, Killian, given her distrust towards you? The Demoness is your most powerful piece. Which will make her nearly as strong as yourself.”

“It’s perfectly fine. I know that Adeline’s a good person under that foul mouth and temper.” I shrugged. “Hell, she joined up with the Demon Lord just to keep her friends safe. But she needs a reason to trust me. I’m willing to extend a little faith to earn some of that trust.”

“Very well. They’re your pieces, after all, but a word of caution to you. Your current acquisition aside, I would choose your next pieces carefully. They will be your greatest allies or can send you to ruin if you let them.

“And do yourself a favor and hold off on using the pawns just yet.”

I looked down at the case, at the eight blackened pawn pieces. “What do they do?”

He picked one up and twirled it through his fingers before throwing it in the air. It nearly hit the whitewashed ceiling before sailing back down. He caught it between his fingers and rolled it into his palm. “Think of them as power-ups. They would be wasted at lower levels. Best to save them for when you really need them.”

I looked up at Callisto, who was now floating in the air, playing cat’s cradle with a long, red string. Callisto finished his stunningly realistic Eiffel Tower in a few seconds, then balled it up and tossed it aside.

With that, he dropped to the ground and gave us both a bow. “Well, I’ve got to be off. There are plenty of exciting things for me to witness, but I’ll keep an eye on you here and there. Have fun, you two!”

We both just stared at the spot where the mad god had been standing for a minute afterward before Adeline turned to me and spoke. “For a god, he’s really not what I was expecting.”

“Yeah, tell me about it.”

Chapter 7- Grissom City

When Callisto left, so, too, did Adeline. She told me it was to let Isaac know what had happened and the deal she had made.

I shrugged. “That’s fine.”

She paused in the doorway, arching an eyebrow. “Just like that?”

“Well, I can’t go with you, not when your friends will probably want to dangle me from a tree for target practice.”

“Hey, that’s not a terrible idea, dibs on the first shot,” she said with a chuckle. “But I figured you’d try to stop me.”

“Why?” I shook my head. “If you don’t come back…or come back with your friends in tow…well, I don’t think it’d go the way you want. I may not kill innocents, but Callisto won’t have any reservations about leveling the school in revenge.” I grinned. “So, in this case, I don’t have to take it on faith that you’ll come back.”

Her cocky attitude faded. “You’re probably right. Not that I was going to anyway. I made a deal. No backing out now.”

Then she was gone.

I sighed when the door shut behind her.

Day one in the apocalypse and I’ve picked a girl who hates me as my partner. Good job. A hell of a way to kick off my grand, world-ending adventure.

I stood in the entryway, staring at the door for a few minutes while I tried to figure out my game plan. With nothing to do but wait for when Adeline returned, I decided to participate in an apocalyptic staple.

Looting.

There was only the master bedroom downstairs, and I figured if there was anything good, it would be in there, so I saved that for last and headed to the kitchen first.

The fridge was stocked to the brim with month-old food and drinks, but the power was still on, so it was all cold. Most of it was too old. But there were some nonperishable food items in the kitchen cabinets and a couple of cases of water nestled between the washer and dryer in the adjoining laundry room.

This wouldn’t be a bad temporary base. It’s got enough food and water for a couple of weeks at least.

As soon as I had the thought, a notification popped in front of my face.

Assign 1248 Wilkerson Ln. as [Temporary Home]

Cost: 10 Coins

Y/N

[Temporary Home] Grants [Well-Rested] Buff.

Fortification Scales with Party Members (Increases by 1 every 5 levels)

1248 Wilkerson Ln.

Fortification Level: 2

Grissom City Threat Level: 6

Safe Zone: Inactive

I read through the notification and paused over the Well-Rested buff. I didn’t know what it did exactly, but anything that gave me a boost was well worth a few coins that I otherwise couldn’t spend.

So with a thought, I purchased the temporary home.

It’s tempting just to hunker down and attempt to weather the storm. But I am the storm, and the storm is currently miles off course.

We can’t stay here long.

With the only other rooms downstairs being the master bedroom and the door that led to the garage, I wanted to save the master for last and headed upstairs to the kiddos’ bedrooms.

One was a girl’s room, young from the lavender walls and stuffed animals all over the bed. I ignored that one and went into the second bedroom.

It was a boy’s room, probably around my age, just from a cursory glance. Though from the piled-up clothes on the bed, we had drastically different tastes in fashion. I gave the closet a perusal, just to see if there was anything I could stand wearing.

There wasn’t. It was all baggy jeans and graphic tees depicting some bands and rappers I’d never heard of. However, the sneakers were nice, all expensive and flashy, but not to my tastes.

But underneath the heaps of underwear in his dresser, I found something surprising.

A pistol.

Well, that’s unexpected.

I picked it up carefully and checked if it was loaded. It had a full magazine. It was blocky, black, and vaguely familiar. I wanted to call it a Glock, and thankfully, my Mantle had my back.

Weapon: Glock 17

The serial number has been filed off even though it was initially purchased legally. Bought using money stolen from Daddy and selling a few leftover painkillers to a local gang member for twice the normal rate because the owner thought it’d make him a badass. Side note. It didn’t.

At least there’s more bullets. Though that only increases the chance of you shooting yourself on accident.

Damage: 25-30 (Ballistic)

Ammunition: 9x19mm (18 Rounds)

Condition: Well-Kept (2% Firearm Failure, +5% Damage Boost)

I snorted at the description and checked over the gun. The Glock didn’t have a manual safety that I could find, and from the numbers and dots on the back of the magazine, it held seventeen rounds, plus the one in the chamber.

Beats out my revolver by a wide margin. Well, hello, new firearm.

Though I kind of need a crash course on how to handle one. Maybe I’ll ask Adeline when she comes back.

I tucked it in my pocket and left the room. I went downstairs and finally tackled the master bedroom.

Nothing stood out at first. There were a few piles of clothes on the floor, and the four-poster bed hadn’t been made, but otherwise, it was normal. A quick rifling through the two nightstands rewarded me with nothing interesting.

It was a little surreal poking through the home of someone else, getting an all too brief glimpse into the lives of others. I shut both drawers and opened the closet. Elegant but modest business attire for the woman and dark suits for the man. Nothing we’d want to wear during the end times.

There was a cheap portable lockbox hidden on the white wire rack in the back of the closet, but no key was in sight. I tossed it on the couch and went to search the garage.

It, like my garage at home, was host to a variety of exercise equipment. There were also metal racks along the wall, holding a random assortment of junk. All of it clearly cost thousands and was well maintained.

I took the pistol out of my pocket and placed it on the rack by the bench press.

With nothing but time to kill, I decided to work out, and I wanted to test and see if Isaac was telling the truth about how stats worked.

I started working out and found that while I used the same amount of weight I’d been working out with at home only yesterday, it was much lighter. I added two more forty-five plates and found that to be a good challenge for me.

Isaac was right. The increase in my Strength stat boosts my physicality. Good to know. Though with my Wisdom so high, I still feel like an idiot for letting Adeline join me.

She obviously hated me, and I couldn’t really blame her for it either. I was trying to destroy the world, and there wasn’t any way I could justify that.

I’d hate me too, in her shoes.

But I needed people I could trust. This was the apocalypse, so finding trustworthy people would become harder and harder as I went on. If burning a little now on Adeline rewarded me with someone I could depend on, then it would be well worth the risk.

I put all thoughts of her out of my mind and continued exercising until my arms turned to noodles.

As I was finishing my last set of one-arm dumbbell curls, the door to the house opened. I made a mad grab for the Glock and pointed it at the open door. Adeline leaned in the doorway, a smug smile across her face. I lowered the gun and finished my last two reps and dropped the weights.

“Look at you go, really worked up a sweat since I’ve been gone, haven’t you?”

I tried not to smile as I came up, glad to see that she’d come back. I snagged a clean hand towel from the rack next to me and wiped my face. “Well, wasn’t much else to do, and I wanted to test if increasing Strength really did.”

“Pretty nifty, right? Though accepting your class took half my levels and reset all my stat points.”

“Seriously?”

“Yep. I’m now level two, halfway to level three. But I got a new skill to play with.”

I tossed the sweat-stained rag on the bench and stowed my gun. “Yeah? What’s it called?”

“Hellbent.” Adeline smiled, a twisted, sinister smile as she held up her hand. A small flame burst to light in her palm, burning a radiant crimson.

I whistled, long and slow. “Okay, that’s badass.”

“Yeah, it is, but I’ve got even more surprises. Come and take a look,” she said, thumbing back toward the living room.

I walked past her into the living room and stopped. Two duffel bags lay on the couch, laden down with supplies and a few guns as well.

“Adeline, where did you get this? Don’t tell me you stole supplies from the school?”

She walked over and claimed the love seat for her own, kicking off her shoes and propping back. “Don’t get your panties in a twist. I didn’t steal anything from the school. And even if I had, they’ll soon be getting more supplies thanks to the deal I made. This is my own stash of supplies I’ve been building since this whole nightmare started. It was in my house for safekeeping.”

“Oh, good.”

I opened the first duffel and found it stuffed full of clothes, all clearly Adeline’s. I recognized a few of the shirts in the bag. I’d seen her wearing them a couple of times at school. There was absolutely nothing in the bag that I could or would want to wear.

Not unless I’m into skinny jeans and emo bands at any rate.

I promptly ignored the clothes and focused on the second bag. It was stuffed with supplies: water, ration bars, and ammo by the case. The barrels of two guns were sticking out of the zipper. One was the black pump-action shotgun she wielded against the Carnival Beasts, and the other was a rifle, a mottled grayish-black beast that looked incredibly intimidating.

“I’m assuming the rifle is mine?”

”You see anyone else with opposable thumbs around here able to operate a firearm? And you sure as shit ain’t touching my Black Shadow. The Daniel Defense is yours.”

I blew out a breath and picked the gun up.

Weapon: Daniel Defense M4V9

A pricy yet effective weapon for those with a bit too much money on their hands. Designed primarily to satisfy the needs of competitive shooters and home defenders. Side note: Has not been rated for the apocalypse.

Oh great. Even more bullets. The chance of you injuring yourself just skyrocketed.

Damage: 40-50 (Ballistic)

Ammunition: 5.56×45mm (30 Rounds)

Condition: Well-Kept (4% Firearm Failure, +5% Damage)

I dropped the magazine and fumbled for the T-shaped handle near the stock to check the chamber was empty.

At least Dad taught me gun safety. Despite Callisto’s little jokes, I’m probably not liable to shoot myself in the foot at least. Hopefully.

Once I was sure the gun was safe, I checked it over. It had a blocky red dot sight mounted and an added extended grip, that I forgot the actual name for, jutting from the bottom of the four-sided notched barrel.

“What is this called again?” I asked, pointing at the rubber grip.

Adeline sighed before her lips lifted in a half-smile, her eyes sparkling with laughter. “That’s called a foregrip. As the screen in front of your face so helpfully details, the gun you’re holding like a tool is a Daniel Defense M4V9, semi-auto, chambered in 5.56. It’s fast with a modified two-pound trigger pull and will put holes in just about anything that isn’t heavily armored.”

“Well, I understood a few of those words,” I replied with a smile.

“In essence, it’s a big, loud gun that lets fly bullets almost as fast as that mouth of yours. It’s perfect for you.”

“You’re so thoughtful,” I said, loading the magazine back in, which took some effort. It fell out the first time I just tried to slap it in there.

“And you’re not what I expected from the Demon Lord.”

“What can I say? I live to fall short of expectations.” I smiled but dropped it. “But seriously. I’ve had this gig for all of one day now. Yesterday to me was getting my ass handed to me by your boyfriend. Give me some time to process all of this.”

“Boyfriend? Who?”

I picked up and dropped both duffel bags on the floor before sitting back on the couch, the cold leather sending shivers down my spine. “Greg, the school's resident douchebag.”

Adeline surprised me by throwing her head back and laughed. When she came back up, her eyes had budding tears in them. “Greg wasn’t my boyfriend. He was my dealer. I scored weed and the occasional tab from him.”

“Greg was a drug dealer? Why doesn’t that surprise me?” I said before my eyes shot up. “But wait, rumor around the school was that Stacy Michaelson caught you two going at it in the girl’s bathroom.”

She frowned, the humor leaving her eyes as fast as it came. Adeline leaned over and snagged a ration bar from the open duffel. “We weren’t going at it exactly…look. Sometimes, when I was low on cash, I’d do a few favors for Greg, and he’d hook me up. But I never screwed him.”

“Seems a little one-sided to me.” I chuckled. “Anything that means spending more time with that asshole has to be a terrible deal.”

Adeline sighed. “Yeah, well. It’s what I had to work with, so I did the best I could.” A slew of conflicting emotions crossed her eyes, but she shook her head and they vanished. “Beauty is a weapon. You either use it, or someone else uses it against you.”

She snagged another bite of her ration bar and chewed for a moment, leaning back on the sofa. “Anyway. All that’s over with now. Along with most everything else.”

“Tell me about it. Yesterday I was dealing with calculus and looking forward to hanging out with my friends this weekend. Now I’m the Demon Lord, whatever the hell that means, and I have to destroy the world. Not exactly what I had in mind when I filled out my career planner, y’know.”

“Yeah, you’re a bit too nice to be the Demon Lord. It’s like some massive fucking disconnect, and it’s weird,” she said, taking another bite of her unappetizing ration bar.

“You’d rather me be a mass-murdering psychopath? Raping and pillaging along the way, as I brought the world to its knees?”

Adeline looked at the half-eaten bar and tossed it on the table in disgust. “Should’ve bargained for some good food for myself while I was selling my soul,” she said and looked at me. “And to answer your question, I’m kind of glad you’re not what I was expecting. But that still doesn’t mean I trust you.”

I sighed and leaned back on the armrest. “Sure, why trust me? I’ve only bent over backwards to be open and honest with you and give you whatever you needed to make you feel comfortable.”

“You’re still the Demon Lord.”

“Which means nothing to me yet except that it’s made you and everyone else automatically hate me on sight, apparently. Yet I’ve done literally nothing to deserve it.”

“It’s not what yo─”

I stood from the couch. “It’s been one hell of a long day. I’m going to bed.”

I slid between the couch and love seat and went to the master bedroom, slamming the door too hard behind me. I went to the adjoining bathroom and took the world’s longest shower, just trying to process everything that had happened today. I was exhausted, beyond exhausted.

When I was done, I toweled off and climbed back into my only set of clothes. I set the Glock on the nightstand next to me and was asleep before my head hit the pillow.

Something woke me after what must’ve been only a few hours. I couldn’t explain how I knew, but I wasn’t alone in the room. I rolled over and grabbed for the gun. My fingers closed around the grip when a voice stopped me.

“It’s just me,” Adeline said.

She stood in the doorway. The soft moonlight streaming through the windows bathed her in shadows, her silhouetted fist poised like she’d been knocking on the frame. It took me a second to clear the sleep from my head.

“What’s going on? Trouble?”

She shook her head. “It’s actually been quiet tonight. But I’m not used to being away from the school. I can’t sleep.”

“So, what? You wanted me to suffer alongside you?”

“I was wondering if you minded if I slept in here. Everyone usually sleeps in the gym together, and I’ve gotten used to sleeping with other people in the room. It’s too quiet by myself.”

“Uh, yeah, that’s fine,” I said as I grabbed a pillow and the top sheet. “You can have the bed. I’ll sleep on the floor.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Adeline said as she crawled over on the left side of the bed and sat on the edge. “It’s plenty big enough for the both of us.”

“But I’m the hated Demon Lord,” I said, my voice bitter. “I can’t be trusted, remember?”

“Goddammit, Killian. I’m…I’m sorry. You have to understand we were all told the Demon Lord was evil, that they would bring about the end of the world. You can’t expect to show up to a friendly welcome after that…but you were also right. You have been helpful. Even saved my life. I’m not ungrateful for that.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

“Fuck you! Why do you have to make even an apology so damn complicated?”

“Have you met me?” I asked, sliding out of bed. “You take the bed. I’ll sleep on the couch.”

“Killian, wait!” she said, but I was halfway out of the room. “Please.”

I sighed, rubbing my aching eyes.

She had to go for a low blow.

“Fine.”

I went back and climbed into bed, not caring that I was inches away from a stunningly beautiful girl. I was asleep before I could mutter goodnight.

Something brushed across my cheek as I awoke, and a soft, unfamiliar feminine voice whispered in my ear.

“Soon.”

I blinked my heavy eyes open. Sharp sunlight drifted in through the sheer curtains, and a chorus of birds sung just outside. I’d rolled onto my back at some point during the night, and I stayed there for a second and let my mind wake up.

Did someone say something or was I dreaming? All I remember is a soft lilac color and something warm pressed against me.

I shook my head. I couldn’t remember.

As I went to sit up, resistance met me. My arm was pinned in place, and that’s when warm breath tickled the side of my neck. Adeline had rolled in her sleep and trapped my arm underneath her in the process. She curled over on her side, and my arm was under her ribcage, with one side of her chest pressed firmly against the crook of my elbow.

Well, that explains why my arm is numb. Jesus, this isn’t what I needed first thing in the morning.

“Adeline,” I whispered, trying to get her to wake up.

No reaction. I tried again, a bit louder, to see if I could get her to wake up. Nothing. I was tired of subtlety and shifted my arm. As soon as I moved an inch, her eyes were open, and her handgun pressed firmly against my forehead.

“Good morning, Adeline. Could you get off me, please?” I said impassively as I stared past the barrel in my face.

“Ah,” she mumbled as she sat up, dropping her arm and releasing mine. “Sorry, I toss in my sleep.”

“You treat everyone you take to bed with a gun in the morning?” I asked as I swung my legs over the side and stood.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” she asked, a smirk in her voice.

“Hard pass. Gun-toting emo girls are so last year.” I chuckled. “Let’s get breakfast and get going.”

“Go where?”

“Grissom City,” I said, digging through my messenger bag for a protein bar and a bottle of water as Adeline did the same with her supplies. “I don’t really have a direction beyond that, but the city is our best and closest bet. I need to find out what I’m dealing with, and Fort Alexander is also outside the city. Could be worth checking out.”

“Not a bad plan,” she said around a mouthful of food. “But getting there isn’t going to be easy. The city is liable to be crawling with Callisto’s little pets.”

“All the better. You’ve been fighting them for a month now, but I haven’t. I need to learn how to handle my new weapons and get used to combat.”

“Well, you’ll have plenty of chances at that.”

When we devoured our meal, we loaded up what spare food and water there was from the kitchen and packed up, even broke open the lockbox, but there was nothing in it but some jewelry and important-looking papers.

We both quickly realized we had too many supplies to carry, so we ended up dropping most of her clothes and moved half of the actual supplies to her duffel. I would carry one myself along with my messenger bag, so I moved the heavier water to the duffel and shuffled around some things. I kept the messenger bag light with just a few protein bars and two bottles of water, along with some extra ammo for the rifle.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 20 Coins

Food: 7 Day’s Supply

Water: 7 Day’s Supply

Status Effects

[Well-Fed] +10% Constitution!

[Well-Rested] +5% Exp!

Ammo

.38 Special: 25 Rounds

9x19mm: 136 Rounds

5.56x45mm NATO: 210 Rounds

Additional Items

First Aid Kit (Low Grade)

Status effects? Well-Rested gives an exp boost. If used right, that’s worth far more than ten coins as long as I take advantage of it before it wears off.

When our bags were secured, I hefted my rifle, and we headed out.

It was a clear, crisp morning, the dew frozen on the dead grass, giving every yard a shimmering rainbow as the sun reflected in the droplets of ice.

Grissom City was only five miles away, but it was slow going as both of us weren’t used to lugging around heavy packs and rifles. I was thankful for my added points in Strength, but as we hiked across endless pavement, I wished I’d boosted my Endurance a bit.

I kept a lookout for both monsters and people as we walked.

If post-apocalyptic games have taught me anything, it’s that people are the actual monsters. Knowing that didn’t make the prospect of potentially killing another human bearable, though. We’ll burn that bridge when we come to it.

The outskirts of the city were mostly empty. Dozens of wrecked or abandoned cars and houses sat silently broken as we passed through the residential neighborhoods, but nothing stood out. We walked past house after house and mile after mile, and it took us over an hour to walk into the city itself.

Grissom City

Threat Level: 6

Status: Infested

Wonder what happens if we clear the area of monsters? Could we take the city back?

I was surprised to see it standing mostly intact. Hundreds if not thousands of broken windows in the gray skyscrapers dotted around, and the mass of abandoned vehicles only grew with each step we took, but there wasn’t any catastrophic damage.

A few demolished storefronts and burned-out gas stations, but nothing beyond that. It was mostly like walking through a city at night. There weren’t any people around, but if I squinted my eyes and glossed over the damage, I could almost pretend there wasn’t an apocalypse going on.

“It’s a lot more intact than I was thinking it would be,” I said, turning to Adeline as we walked.

“Yeah, well, most of the people evacuated pretty quickly when it was apparent something was going down. From what the military told us, the east coast got hit first. Callisto’s pets ran right over New York and Boston like it was nothing. Less than ten percent survived from what the soldiers said.”

“What about the west coast?”

“Nothing like the east, but they still took a beating. I don’t know much more than that.”

“So you think they’d be swarming with monsters?” I asked as we rounded a corner next to a former deli, which had its roof caved in like something massive had fallen on it.

“That’d be a safe bet.”

I nodded. “Well, Callisto told me to start leveling up. And without more to go on, I’d say that’s what we should both focus on in the short term. We can grab some gear from the military base and head somewhere with lots of monsters. Start grinding some levels.”

Adeline shrugged. “Not a bad plan. Better than anything I can think of right now.”

Grissom City wasn’t as densely congested as some big cities, but as we got closer to the heart of downtown, we passed the shopping district, which converged on the giant shopping mall.

I figured it would be a good place to gather supplies. But I clearly wasn’t the only one who had that idea.

As we got close to it, the building screamed danger. Most of the windows were boarded up, and Adeline noticed several men on the roof patrolling. Once we knew it was occupied, we gave it an extensive berth, skirting along the highway and into the heart of the city.

The highway we were on led straight out of town, and if we wanted to get to the military base, we would need to cross through downtown to do so.

We saw very little monster activity the entire trip. A few in the distance that were too far away to make out, or a few Carnival Beasts along the rooftops, but they never came close to us.

It was rather strange, but a part of me was relieved that they kept their distance.

Once we stepped off the highway, it was another fifteen-minute hike into downtown itself.

This part of the city was older and boasted the most character. The newer parts of the city spread out from the center, but downtown was where the heart and soul of Grissom resided.

Which is why it hurt so much to see it in various states of ruin.

Clearly, a few large-scale fights had broken out here, and most of the older buildings couldn’t stand up to the abuse brought against them. Old worn bricks and shards of glass littered the streets along with too many empty bullet casings. Pockmarks in the cement spoke of explosions that had blasted the nearby buildings to dust.

We trudged along through the mess for a while until the bark of an automatic rifle echoed sharply around us.

We swiftly headed into one of the alleyways as soon as the gunfire started. It was close, but I had no way of telling if they were shooting at us or not. The echoes of the gunshots rebounded off the empty buildings and made pinpointing the sound difficult.

“Two or three streets ahead. A single shooter,” Adeline said, letting go of me and creeping down the alley.

“Where are you going!” I hissed at her.

“To find out what’s going on,” Adeline said, looking back at me. “A single shooter means they’re fighting monsters. Didn’t we just say the goal is to level up?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t think that meant rushing into danger without a plan!”

“Buck up, baby boy. This is where it gets fun!” Adeline shouted in excitement and took off, leaving me alone in the alley.

Right, let’s do the smart thing and run straight for danger without any discussion first.

That’s when I realized I was standing around and ran to catch up with her.

And I’m just following her, so who’s the bigger idiot here?

I sighed.

It’s probably me.

Chapter 8- Fire and Fury

The gunfire kept up as we approached, but each burst came in slower than the last. By the time we’d crossed the few streets in between the gunman and us, their shots had all but dwindled to nothing.

Sounds like they’re almost out. We need to hurry.

The two of us rounded a building and crossed the road, heading to a nearly obliterated street. Crumbling stores barely stood, clothing and merchandise spilled from the shattered storefront windows.

And smack dab in the middle of the street was a massacre.

Yellow monster blood splattered across the concrete along with the gore and internal organs of over a dozen creatures. All which lay strewn over the street amid wanton destruction. The bodies of several smaller Carnival Beasts covered the road, as well as larger, bulbous masses of flesh straight from my worst nightmares.

Things my imagination couldn’t have conjured in my wildest dreams.

Callisto’s pets weren’t the only casualties on the broken street. Seven or eight soldiers lay torn to shreds as well, bright red blood mixed in abstract chaos around the monsters.

Only a single soldier remained, clad in mottled gray and green fatigues and tan Kevlar. He wielded a large rifle and fired in short bursts as five monsters surrounded him.

They were the twisted amalgamation of an anaconda and a king crab fused into some demented abomination. Eight-foot-long snake tails flowed and rose into a humanoid crab, with a massive red-shelled torso and two long arms that ended in pincers.

Their backs were to me. All of them had broad, hard-shell carapaces riddled with points that looked sharp enough to skewer me.

Well, that’s disturbing and completely unhinged. A half-smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. Fits Callisto to a T.

“What the fuck?” Adeline said as she gasped at the monsters.

So, she hasn’t seen them either, lovely.

Let’s find out what they’re called.

Inspect.

Monster (Low-Tier): Charade Beast

Health: 300/300

Exp: 98

AC: 25

“Fuck me, those things are creepy,” Adeline shouted, and opened fire with her shotgun.

She ran and knelt by a late model Toyota, propping her shotgun on the rust eaten hood, and continued shooting.

With Inspect active, each time they lost health, tiny red numbers jumped out from the beast. With each shell from her shotgun, they dropped a few points, but not near enough to account for the ammo she burned through. By the time she’d gone through four shells, they hadn’t taken off more than a few slivers of health.

Health: 267/300

If we went about it like this, we’d waste all of our ammo before we took even one down, and we had five to deal with.

Their backs seem the most armored. We’ll never get through them, not at this range and without armor-piercing rounds.

The soldier threw down his gun and drew his pistol. He ran and jumped onto the hood of a small minivan and fired four rounds into what must’ve been the head of the closest Charade Beast.

Blood splashed from the top of the beast, bits of flesh and vileness sprayed outward, coating the soldier in viscera. The head was obviously the weak point as those four rounds turned it into crab paste, and the monster teetered over and dripped its twisted blood onto the pavement.

“Go for the head!” I shouted at Adeline and sprinted across the street to a Jeep Cherokee that had been flipped over on its side.

“Yeah, no shit!” she shouted back.

With my rifle in hand, I knelt and lined up a shot. The adrenaline of battle flowed through me, and my hands shook. When I fought the Carnival Beasts, I relied on pure reflex, and we had them outnumbered. Here it was reversed, we were outnumbered, and I didn’t know what the hell I was doing.

The Charade Beasts finally caught on that we were there, and three of them turned and slithered their way towards us. They were hulking monstrosities, but their powerful tails allowed them to move quicker than I expected.

Its beady, black eyes stared unblinking and dead as it raised its jagged pincer.

I fired.

My shot went wide, glancing off its chest and nicking only a couple of ticks of damage off its three hundred points of health.

Shit!

I couldn’t line up another shot in time and threw myself to the ground as the claw struck the fender of the Jeep, crumpling the metal around its massive red claw.

I sprawled on the concrete as the coarse material ripped into my palms, and my rifle skidded away from me. Rust and salt slid between my teeth as I bit my tongue and scrambled for my gun.

The beast shook its claw free with a jerk. The hood clung to its arm as it ripped free from the Jeep. With a glance, the Charade Beast grabbed the hunk of metal with its other hand and flung it at me.

My fingers closed around the barrel of my gun as it launched the hood at me, and I rolled out of the way, bringing the rifle to my chest. I got up from the ground and knelt as I hip fired a string of bullets.

Six of them struck against its carapace, but the recoil knocked the rest of the rounds up into its squishy mouth and brain.

Red letters flashed above its head, showing the word ‘Critical’ before an arc of yellow washed it away.

I’d taken down one of them, but I couldn’t celebrate, not when four more still lived. I jumped to my feet and went to help Adeline, who fought off two of them.

One of them swung at her, but at the last second, she turned her body, and the jagged pincer missed her by an inch.

“How about some fried crab, you ugly bastard?” she yelled a second before her hand shimmered and crimson fire erupted from her palm.

With a flick of her wrist, the radiant blaze shot out and stuck like napalm to the beast. Two seconds later and its entire body was ablaze, engulfed in a raging inferno.

We stood mere feet from the roaring red blaze, but no heat rose from it.

The Charade Beast screamed as its flesh blackened and cracked as it burned alive. It died with one final croak of pain, falling to the ground and crumbling to ash.

I choked as the wind swept up the remains in a gruesome flurry, and they drifted over my sweat-stained skin, sticking to my arms and face. “Holy hell, that was…”

“Badass, right?” she said, gloating over her kill.

Flesh scraped across metal, and I turned as the third Charade Beast towered over Adeline. It raised its claw, poised to take her head.

“Adeline, move!”

She threw herself into a side lunge and slid over the hood of the Toyota and out of the way of the beast’s claw.

It gouged a chunk of metal from the beat-up car, but it got stuck on the front wheel well. Adeline dropped her shotgun when she dove and went for her sidearm as I reached the monster.

With a thought, I activated Demon Claws, and the familiar energy drain flowed into my hands. As my fingers elongated, I dropped my rifle and went in for close combat.

I had no idea if my claws could even damage the beast, but I had to try. The creature struggled to free itself from the wreck of the car but couldn’t work out how, so it was just tugging, rendering small gashes across its red flesh from the rusted metal edges.

I brought my claws down on its arm, expecting to meet resistance, but there was nothing but a little tug as my black talons glided through its rough carapace and flesh as I severed its arm from its body.

A large red one-hundred-fifty appeared embossed in bold letters next to the equally large critical over its head.

I smiled as the words faded.

Take that, fugly.

It raged at me, but it could scream and rail all it wanted. I knew I could kill it easily now.

I pushed off the car and jammed both my hands into where I thought its heart would be. The Charade Beast’s health plummeted another seventy-five points but didn’t deal the death blow as I thought. I tugged at my hands, but they’d snagged on something, and by the time I pulled one free, I’d lost focus and left myself open to attack.

The beast flailed with its remaining claw and sideswiped me.

It was a glancing blow, but its claws were strong enough to rip chunks in metal cars. A world of pain hit me, and I flew back. I slammed against the ruined Toyota a half-second later, denting the driver’s side door.

My arm cracked on impact, and even more pain rolled through me.

My health bar appeared in the corner of my vision—a small red line trailing from bright red to black and reading.

Health: 287/330

Dammit, that hurt. I picked myself up and moved my arm. But it’s not as bad as I think it should be, though. My hand was numb, and my entire arm throbbed with pain, but I could still flex my fingers and move my wrist. I think that should’ve broken my arm, and even if I hadn’t, I have taken hits a third as strong as that that’ve hurt more.

Is it my stats? Does one of them affect pain tolerance?

I hoped so because even if it should’ve hurt more, it still hurt plenty and was enough of a distraction that I almost missed the whoosh of air being displaced rapidly. I turned and ducked right as another swing would have taken my head from my shoulders.

My thick hair ruffled as the Charade Beast’s claw sailed just overhead.

Its health is low, just one more good shot.

My claws extended, I charged the monster. I sunk my right hand deep into its chest once more and used my grip on its insides to haul myself closer to its hideous face. For a second, I held all my weight with my right hand before my feet found purchase along the rough carapace, and my left arm was within reach.

It attacked me with its remaining claw, but I sliced my talons at its bicep and bit through its hardened skin like paper, shearing its arm from its torso. As it reared back, letting out an unholy screech of pain, I whipped my claws towards its face.

I punctured through its black eyes and dug my fingers into what passed for its brain. I clenched my fist tight and crushed its bulbous face in my grip.

More than a bit of blood and gore poured out and ran down my hand. But the beast was dead.

It turned in its death throes and toppled over, falling back towards the Toyota. We landed with a jarring crunch as the aged metal hood bent and groaned in protest of the monster’s carcass, but it held.

Damn, that’s one tough car.

As blood began pouring around the car, I received a notification.

Combat Results!

2 Killed (Charade Beasts): 196 Exp!

Experience Boost (5%): 10 Exp!

Total Gain: 206 Exp!

AC Earned: 50!

Level Up!

I closed it, stepped off the beast, and went to check on Adeline.

She leaned on a car further up the street, arm propped on the hood as carefree as she could be, with her shotgun nestled in the crook of her left hand.

Adeline grinned madly at me. “Wasn’t half bad, might make something of yourself after all.”

“Maybe,” I said, rolling my injured shoulder back and forth. “But next time, I won’t be so careless.”

“Just give it an hour or two, should be healed by then,” Adeline said, pointing at my arm.

“Is rapid regeneration a thing now?”

She shrugged, standing up and shouldering her gun. “Sort of. When your health bar starts to refill, it heals all the damage you’ve taken.”

“That’s a neat trick, especially since hospitals and doctors are probably in very short supply these days,” I said, walking over and climbing on the trunk of the car to catch my breath.

I thumbed over to the soldier who’d taken down the last of the Charade Beasts. “How’d he do?”

“Not bad. Got lucky, though. Pistol ran dry as the last one died.”

“Well, we’d have backed him up, regardless.”

She laughed, her stern expression fading for a moment. “What’s this ‘we’ business? You were fingers deep in a Lovecraftian abomination when it went down.”

“Fine, you’d have backed him up.”

“Better,” she said and started walking.

The man stood over his fallen comrades. I thought it best to give him some time alone and pay his respects. I was about to tell Adeline to hold up when he started going through their pockets and looting their stuff.

“What the hell are you doing?” I shouted down the street.

“Waste not,” he replied with a laugh before his voice fell. “As disrespectful as it is, I’d expect them to do the same if it were me.”

He took his time taking as much ammo and gear as he could carry and walked over to us with his rifle propped up against his shoulder and a large camo bag across his back.

A ballistic helmet concealed his face, reflecting light off the visor as he walked, his stance oozing swagger. The soldier sauntered through the blood of his allies and the monster corpses like he was taking a stroll through the park, and I half expected him to start whistling.

The man stopped just shy of us and dropped his bag on one of the few non-gore-soaked stretches of concrete and leaned against a streetlamp. His rifle was in his arms, but the barrel pointed down and away from us.

“Much obliged for the assist,” he said with a nod. “Another minute, and the fat lady would’ve sung.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but Adeline butted in and interrupted. “You’re welcome, though our help comes with a price.”

The man chuckled in response. “Mercenaries? I can respect that. Take what you want from my dead friends over there. There’s still a ton of supplies, and no way can I carry it all. Adequate enough for you?”

“It’ll do.”

“Good, because there’s nothing else I can offer you.” he said, taking off his helmet.

Finn was younger than I expected, early twenties or so. He towered over me, probably at least three inches taller than I was, but he was built lean. He had short black hair cropped to his scalp on the sides with just a little on top, which paired well with his chestnut skin and handsome face.

The only thing that marred his face was a deep scar on the side of his mouth that turned part of his lip up into a permanent half-smirk.

He smiled at Adeline, his dark eyes lighting up with humor as he held out a hand. “Name’s Finn, by the way.”

“Nice to meet you, Finn. I’m Killian, and this is─”

“Adeline,” she said tersely, her finger resting dangerously close to her trigger.

She stared at his proffered hand until it became awkward, and he let it drop.

“Right. No hard feelings. Trust is a hard-to-find commodity these days. As I said, you two can take what you want from my squad.”

I turned to Adeline. “You want me─”

“Yeah, I’ll keep an eye out.”

“Gotcha.”

I left Adeline to handle Corporal Pretty Boy and went to loot the dead.

The practice, while macabre and gruesome, was necessary.

Despite the cool air, the blood had begun to dry under the beating sun overhead and stuck to my boots with every step, squelching. Bile rose in my throat at the sticky sound.

The stench of death hung in the air and only intensified as I got closer to the carnage. I breathed through my mouth and pried as much ammo from the dead as I could. Most of it was 5.56 rounds, which I could use in my rifle. But numerous weapons were lying discarded among the dead—all sleek and menacing.

The biggest was a massive machine gun, a belt of rifle cartridges snaking from its side. I bent to pick it up and grunted slightly. It was heavier than I expected, probably more than twenty pounds.

Weapon: M240 Bravo

The prized possession of the previous owner. He’s shouting obscenities at you this very second for daring to put your grubby hands on it.

Heavy. Too heavy for those noodles you call arms. Carrying this has a high likelihood of developing chronic back pain. Also, you just figured out how to handle a semi-automatic rifle. Learn to crawl before you wield high-powered machine guns.

Damage: 80-100 (Ballistic)

Ammo: 50 7.62×51mm NATO Rounds

Condition: Well-Kept (27% Firearm Failure, +10% Damage)

What’s up with the different failure rates? Most of the guns I own have a Well-Kept status, yet they all have different failure percentages.

Is it because this is a machine gun? And the rate of fire could cause a jam or something?

Laughter sounded from behind me, and I turned as Finn leaned against the hood of the car. His eyes met mine and lit up. “I’d leave Rickey’s Bravo alone unless you want him haunting your ass. He loved it more than his own life.” Finn paused. “But seriously, I wouldn’t carry it if I were you, heavy as sin, and eats through ammo like no one’s business.”

He stopped, lost in thought. “Guess I don’t need to carry these anymore,” he said as he pulled a large pouch from his heavy vest and tossed it aside. “I’d go for one of the carbines. From your Daniel, I’d say they’re more your speed.”

I knelt and left the giant gun where I’d found it.

He’s right, and so is the sarcastic description. Carrying that would probably mess up my back something fierce. But having one of the other rifles wouldn’t hurt anything.

I think all of these are fully automatic, not to mention the waste of ammo. I’m nowhere near a good enough shot to handle one right now.

Though there’s plenty of ammo and no way can I carry it all. Might be as good a time as any to practice.

I picked one up that looked like a modern version of the Vietnam-era M16.

Weapon: M4A1

Ah. A much better choice. The previous owner is only looking at you with mild disdain. Chambered for the same ammunition as your other rifle but can be switched from semi-automatic to full auto. Suitable for those moments when the only thing that can save your ass is a hail of lead and a prayer.

Damage: 40-50 (Ballistic)

Ammo: 30 5.56x45mm NATO Rounds

Condition: Well-Kept (14% Firearm Failure, +10% Damage)

It boasted a shorter barrel than my rifle and was far better decked out. Several attachments stuck out to me. It had a similar red dot sight to my Daniel but also had a vertical foregrip bolted under the barrel.

Even just picking it up, it was easier to maneuver than my current rifle.

It also had a silencer attached, which I grinned at.

I felt like a badass holding the weapon.

Since it had the same ammo as my rifle, I took it, promising to practice with it when I was done looting.

Finn had turned back to Adeline, who had thawed by a few degrees to the soldier, and they were discussing something that I couldn’t make out.

Why is it she gets to chitchat while I’m stuck pilfering the dead for their valuables…oh right, I volunteered, that’s why.

I stepped carefully over the mess of corpses and stopped a couple dozen feet away, where I only picked up the general whisper of their conversations.

Let her talk. I need to see about my Mantle.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 287/300 (330)

Level: 3

Exp: 12/371

15 Stat Points Available!

I added my new points to Strength, Constitution, and Wisdom. Five apiece.

Though I had no idea how my stats were looking since I was only level three, or how high they went or what the level cap was.

The Soul of the Demon Lord has tiers at the twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, and one hundred levels. So that stands to reason one hundred is the level cap. But that still doesn’t tell me what the stat cap is.

Stat Page

Strength: 20

Constitution: 15

Perception: 0

Endurance: 0

Agility: 0

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 0

As I checked my Mantle once more, I noticed the health bar had increased by fifty points, putting my health at three-fifty, which was boosted by the Well-Fed bonus to three eighty-five.

Nearly four hundred health seems respectable. Though, I don’t like zeros on the board. I’ll need to bring the other stats up soon.

While Adeline conversed with Finn, I had nothing better to do, so I dropped my bags and tried out my new gun. I aimed at one of the few non-busted streetlights overhead and fired.

Three blasts shook my arm with a single depression of the trigger and shattered the glass casing over the bulb. I was surprised. The gunfire was louder than I expected, given the silencer. It did a lot to mask the noise but was still clearly an audible gunshot.

So, movies and video games lied to me about how silencers work. That’s disheartening.

I lowered the gun and flipped the safety. It had a selector on the receiver to toggle between semi-automatic, burst, and fully automatic. I flicked it on semi and walked back to Adeline.

Finn nodded with approval at the gun in my hand. “That’s Jared’s M4. You have good taste.”

“I was surprised by how noisy it was, even with the silencer.”

Finn laughed loudly. “That’s because silencers don’t exist. They’re called suppressors, and unless you’re using a specific type of ammo, they only reduce the noise of gunshots by a marginal degree.”

“Then what’s the point?” I asked, looking down at the gun.

“So you don’t go deaf when you shoot without wearing ear protection,” he said, tapping his ear. He smiled when he dropped his hand and held it out to me. “Your name was Killian, right? It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” I said, shaking his hand.

When we let go, I turned to Adeline. “We’d better get off the street. I don’t like how out in the open we are.”

“Good point,” she said, grabbing her gear by her feet.

“It was good to meet you, Finn,” I said and turned away.

“Hold up, Killian. If you don’t mind, I’d like to propose a temporary alliance. One man alone in this city isn’t the kind of daring adventure I signed on for.”

“Hmm,” I rubbed my chin.

It’s not that I don’t trust Finn, but I don’t trust him. He’s got too much poise for the apocalypse. Or maybe I’m just jealous of his good looks.

Still, it’s not just my call on this one. Adeline deserves a say as well.

“Adeline, what do you think?“

“I don’t know. I mean, another set of eyes wouldn’t hurt, as long as we don’t get stabbed in the back.”

Finn chuckled and held up his hands. “I don’t have the patience for deceit. Too many lies to keep track of, and it just makes my head hurt. Though neither of you have any way of believing me.”

Adeline shrugged. “Let him come. He starts acting sus, I say we shoot him.”

“Is that your response to everything?” I thumbed back to Adeline. “Don’t mind her. She’s kind of nice when she’s not acting like a psychopath.”

Adeline chucked a piece of loose concrete at the back of my head.

“Ow! Jesus, Ade. That freaking hurt,” I said, rubbing the back of my head.

“Serves you right,” she said, jogging to catch up with me as we hopped onto the sidewalk and took a side alley in between a hardware store and a clothing store. She turned and glanced at me, narrowing her eyes. “Wait, did you just call me Ade?”

“Seems easier than Adeline. What, don’t like it?”

“It’s not that,” she mumbled. “I’ve just never had a nickname before.”

I smiled. “Well, now you do.”

“Thanks, Kill.”

I cringed. “I appreciate the sentiment, but please, not that.”

“You don’t like it?”

“Not since kindergarten. It makes me sound like a wannabe goth vampire…or a Demon Lord.”

She laughed. “Yeah, definitely wouldn’t want to make you sound like the Demon Lord. How awful would that be?”

I giggled alongside her, and we exited the alley, snickering our asses off while Finn stared at both of us with a confused expression playing across his face.

The street we exited onto was less run-down than most we’d come across—only a few broken doors and not one busted window. Even the cars on the street were intact, nestled in their parking spots. It was a pleasant change of pace from the turmoil we’d just come from.

The three of us stopped for a moment and walked into an abandoned Starbucks across the road. The door was open, but I guess people had more important things to do during the apocalypse than steal coffee, so it was mostly unlooted.

As I pushed the door open, I was greeted with the strong scent of roasted beans that had sunk into every piece of furniture and the walls themselves. It was a wonderful, familiar scent, and I basked in the normalcy of it for just a moment.

“Ooh. I love their coffee,” Adeline said, taking a deep breath.

I snorted as I went behind the counter and was delighted to find that everything still worked.

The power is still working, but how long can that last? Sooner or later, something will break down, and with no one to fix it, that’ll be it.

Best enjoy it while we can.

“Eh. They actually make terrible coffee. It’s always burnt,” I said. “And they never bother to care enough because it’s a coffee shop that doesn’t actually sell coffee.”

Finn laughed. “Uh-oh. Looks like you touched a nerve, Adeline.” He glanced at me with humor in his eyes. “So what do they sell, if not coffee?”

I scoffed. “They sell mocha-frappe-crappuccinos to gullible white girls who say they love coffee, but in reality, all they really like is sugar and milk. And despite that, they’ll bend over backwards, insisting that it’s coffee so they don’t have to admit to themselves that they’re actually drinking a milkshake at eight o’clock in the morning.”

Adeline laughed. “Hey, what can I say? They’re addictive.”

“So is cocaine.” I smiled. “Now. Let me show you what a good cup of coffee can taste like when you don’t burn the hell out of it.”

“As long as there’s at least a little cocaine in it,” Finn said.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

I set a large pot of coffee brewing and snagged a plastic-wrapped Danish and devoured it while Adeline and Finn sat at a table.

He unslung his bag and quickly dug out something blocky sealed in brown plastic.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“MRE,” he said. “Nerves had me skipping lunch, and with all the adrenaline, I’m ravenous.” He quickly tore it open and removed a bundle of cardboard or plastic wrapped containers.” He picked up a small rectangular bar and grinned. “Here, Killian, your reward for letting me tag along.”

As he held it out, I grabbed it with a shrug and checked it over.

“An energy bar?”

“A First Strike energy bar,” he said with a laugh. “Don’t knock it. It’s basically a delicacy. Put a little peanut butter on it and warm it up and I swear, it’ll change your life.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” I said, stowing it away before turning to him once more. “So, what happened out there, Finn? What were you doing?”

“Extermination,” he said as he prepared his meal.” My captain sent my squad to clear the Sewers, which has become a nesting ground for those monsters. But obviously, things didn’t go according to plan. When we arrived on site, we found a large group on Flint St. Sergeant Holt split our squad into two fireteams to pincer them. I was designated Team Leader and took my team to head off the other side, but something went wrong, and by the time we maneuvered around, they’d started attacking, and we rushed in to support. You both know what happened after that.”

“Unfortunately. I’m sorry about your friends,” I said.

“Thanks.” Finn let out a sharp breath, placing his palms flat on the table. “Though they weren’t the first comrades I’ve lost since this nightmare started, and they won’t be the last.

“But what about the two of you? What are you after that’s worth braving the streets during the apocalypse?”

“Supplies,” I said around a mouthful of pastry. “We need better gear and hoped the military would have what we needed.”

He was silent for a second before he realized what we were after. “You guys want in Fort Alexander?”

“That’s the plan,” Adeline said before turning to me. “Hey, Killian, toss me one of those.”

I grabbed a few more pastries and threw them to her while Finn fiddled with some green bag from his MRE. “Well, what do you say, Finn, want to help us?”

He pondered a moment as he scratched at his stubble. “I can’t help you break into the fort if that’s what you’re thinking, but I do have another idea. Intel put the numbers in the Sewers at a couple dozen or more, but with my squad wiped, I can’t do it alone. And I can’t go back unless it’s reporting mission success. I won’t.

“So how about you two help me complete my mission? You’re clearly talented enough, and I’ll let you have the reward for completing it.”

Without warning, a blue screen flared to life across my vision.

Extermination Quest: Surf and Turf!

Eliminate the infestation of Charade Beasts in the Sewers under the city

Difficulty: Medium

Reward: 532 Exp

250 AC

“What do you think, Ade?” I asked.

“I could go for some crab legs,” she said with a laugh.

Chapter 9- Crabfest

The soft chime of the coffee maker sounded throughout the small café, and both Adeline and Finn jerked at the sudden interruption, going for their weapons while I roared with laughter.

“Easy, guys. Don’t shoot the coffeemaker,” I said, still shaking while I poured a cup. “Want any?”

“God yes.”

“I’d love some.”

I brought the entire pot over to the table and set it down on a bed of napkins while I went and grabbed three large ceramic mugs with the coffee shop logo and name in soft green letters. I poured mine and let the others handle their own.

Adeline took hers black while I added only a little sugar and cream, but Finn poured copious amounts of both into his.

“Don’t worry about the Charade Beasts. Diabetes will kill you long before they get a chance,” Adeline said as she took a sip.

“Don’t knock it till you try it,” Finn replied, taking a huge gulp. “Liquid ambrosia.”

I nursed mine for a while and thought about what our plan of action should be.

Unfortunately, I haven’t been living in this world as long as they have. I don’t have a head for this yet. I think I’m supposed to be the leader of this merry band, yet I’m the one with the least experience, and I don’t have any clue on what to do.

And I can’t forget my end goal. I need to find some way to end the world.

With such an evil and audacious goal, I should be twirling my mustache while petting a hairless cat. It seemed an impossible task, one that I had no idea how to go about starting, let alone completing.

Worry about that later. Let’s work on getting our bearings and grinding some levels. We can tackle the end of the world when we know we aren’t going to die from making a stupid mistake out there.

Both Finn and Adeline have more experience in this world than I do. Let’s try asking them for advice.

I looked up from staring off into space as Finn finished telling the punchline to a joke. Adeline choked on her coffee and nearly did a spit take. When she’d stopped laughing and wiped her mouth, I spoke.

“Okay, so this quest, do you two have any ideas on how to go about it?”

Finn wiped at the corner of his eyes and smiled at me. “A bit too serious, aren’t you, Killian?”

I shrugged. “Feels like an appropriate mood given the current state of things.”

“Nah, man,” he said, shaking his head. “That’s the wrong outlook. Life is short, especially now. Gotta take what happiness you can these days.”

I pointed at myself. “Do I look like a live-in-the-moment kind of guy?”

He snorted. “No. You kinda look like the drummer for an emo band, but you know, less douchey.”

“Not the worst thing I’ve been called. So back to the quest, tell me what you know.”

Finn sighed but relented with a half-smile. “Pretty much what I told you. Rough numbers are a couple baker’s dozen, which should be less with the ones we dispatched, but there could be more inside the Sewers themselves. It’s been too risky to send a recon team.”

I stood from the stool and walked back behind the counter. Inside the cooler were a couple of water bottles, and after the piping hot coffee, I wanted something cold. I drained the bottle while I thought about things.

The Sewers are narrow, and from what I remember from the last time I was down there, they only opened in a few places. It’s mostly winding tunnels.

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” I said, tossing the empty bottle in the trash. “I’m not a tactician or a soldier. I’m a gamer, for God’s sake. But their numbers shouldn’t matter down there. If we can corner them in the tunnels, they won’t be able to gang up on us, and we can pick them off one at a time.”

“That’s what I’m counting on. Without proper intel, it’s not worth coming up with a complicated plan. We go in, check our fire, and don’t let them surround us.”

“What’s your class and level, Finn?” I asked.

“Soldier, level nine. Skills are Phantom Grenade and Unload.”

I tilted my head, tugging at my ear. “And those do?”

“Phantom Grenade is pretty much what it sounds like. I can create a grenade out of thin air. Does about the same damage as an M67, just without the shrapnel. Good for clearing a room without worrying about the surroundings. Unload lets me fire continuously for fifteen seconds and doesn’t burn through any ammo.

“But if you didn’t know that, means you have a unique class. My cards are on the table. How about yours?”

“We’d best be off, don’t want to wait any longer,” Adeline said hastily, standing up in a rush.

Finn smiled as she picked up her gear and cast his eyes toward me. I just shrugged and grabbed my M4.

“Alright, I won’t pry, but consider that the last freebie I give you.”

“Only fair, since you still haven’t proven yourself yet,” Adeline replied.

“Fair enough.” He shrugged.

A light breeze swept through the street as we walked out of the café. It was sunny outside, but nowhere near enough to take the chill entirely from the air.

Going to be a cold winter this year.

“Alright, Finn, where to?” I asked.

“Best bet is Bleaker Ave. Two streets over.”

We lapsed into silence after that. As much as we wanted to talk, conversations out in the open were probably a good way to get killed, considering the possible danger lurking around every corner.

Besides, your antisocial is showing. Maybe stop trying to be an outcast and start having fun with your comrades. Might die at any time. Maybe Finn was right.

I should stop taking things so seriously.

Dark and brooding isn’t something I can pull off. Best not even try.

The way to Bleaker was clear, for the most part. We didn’t run into anything more vicious than a pack of stray dogs digging for scraps in the garbage, but we kept a sharp lookout.

We rounded the corner next to the old Grissom Library and headed down a flight of concrete stairs that led to the sewers.

They weren’t really sewers. It was actually a mash-up of large storm drains and old prohibition tunnels that had been carved out way before I was born. Every Grissom City kid explored them at least once, and everyone just called them the Sewers.

The large concrete drainage ditch was dry, which meant the rest of the inside should be relatively safe to walk around in, though because of the darkness and the damp, there was always mold and slippery slime that was liable to trip us up if we weren’t careful.

The rusted iron bars were bent and torn, like something large had forced its way inside. The entire concrete housing for the entrance was ripped out, and individual rebar bars and concrete shards were all over.

What are the odds it’s just wear and tear and not a giant evil monster waiting to eat my face off?

I frowned and kicked at a loose bit of concrete as I stepped forward. “Well, who wants to go down the dark and spooky tunnel filled with monsters first?”

Silence stretched behind me, and I turned around to Adeline and Finn, both holding fingers to their noses and trying hard not to laugh.

“Nose goes,” Adeline said, her eyes alight with mischief.

“I hate both of you.” I sighed and turned back to the tunnel and held up my rifle. I turned on the high lumen flashlight mounted just under the barrel and, with fear in my chest, walked into the Sewer.

As I entered, a notification flashed to life.

Grissom City Dungeon: The Sewers

Difficulty: Medium

Recommended Level: 5

A dungeon?

I didn’t know what all a dungeon entailed, but it looked like I was going to get hands-on experience.

The rancid stench of stagnant water mixed with concrete dust and rot melded into a miasma that permeated the corridor like an invisible cloud. As soon as I took a step, it echoed down the tunnel, bouncing off the walls and alerting our presence to everything nearby.

Well, stealth is out of the question. That’s for damn sure.

Though it worked for us as much as it did against us, a long drag of flesh over stone told me a monster was slithering toward us.

“That didn’t take long,” I whispered. “We’ve got company, guys.”

We crept along through the curved and dark hallway, weapons at the ready and just waiting for a target.

The first of the Charade Beasts waited just around the bend. It hunched over and had its long snake tail coiled around itself. It dug its pincers into something I couldn’t see. Flesh ripped and clung to its claws as it lifted it to its gaping maw.

I whistled. “Yo, Mr. Krabs!”

It stopped feasting and whirled around at my voice. I already had my sights lined up, and as soon as my flashlight reflected in its black eyes, I squeezed the trigger rapidly. Half a dozen shots shredded its face and blew a macabre Rorschach across the concrete backdrop as yellowed blood and viscera slid down the wall.

Looks like a bunny to me.

Finn snorted behind me, covering his mouth as he tried to stifle his chuckling. “SpongeBob, good one.”

“Can’t go wrong with the classics.”

Finn stared past me down the tunnel. “You want to take point on this?”

“You mean, do I want to be the first one in danger?”

He nodded.

“Yeah, but next time I won’t tolerate cheating in nose goes. You have to actually say it for it to count.”

“Fair point.”

We kept walking, me in front, Finn bringing up the rear, and Adeline in between. Not even twenty feet down the tunnel, two more Charade Beasts appeared from a crossroads.

They were large, terrifying creatures, but they were too wide to fit down the hallway at once, making killing them a breeze. I flipped the switch on my rifle to automatic and kept my fire under control as they both came towards me.

Killing them was as simple as going for the head, and with how large they were, even with my inexperience with guns, I could still hit them with decent accuracy.

I used the rest of my magazine on the two in front of me and ran dry. They crashed into each other as they died, falling backward, sending a low thud through the concrete.

As I knelt, I kept my eyes forward, reaching into my side satchel to take out a fresh magazine. I loaded it and racked the charging handle to load a fresh round into the chamber. When I was ready, we moved again.

Though we had a choice to make once we reached the crossway.

“So which way do we go?” I asked.

Adeline raised her hand, then immediately put it down. “I have a terrible plan.”

I blew out a breath. Hoping she wasn’t about to confirm what I was about to ask. “It’s not split up, is it?”

“That obvious, huh?”

“It’s not such a bad plan if you think about it,” Finn interjected. “With how small the tunnels are, we won’t ever face more than one at a time, and they drop easily with headshots. We would cover more ground, and we could all get some experience.”

“Sure, Fred, Daphne. Me and Scoob will go searching through the creepy ass tunnels while you search the bedrooms,” I said, laughing.

Adeline flicked my ear. “You watched way too many cartoons growing up.”

“Blame yourself. You set me up with a perfect opportunity.”

I didn’t like the idea of splitting up, but it might have been the best option for all things considered. We both needed to level up, and we couldn’t do that if I was the only one hogging the grind.

“Okay, we’ll split up, but watch your ass, please.”

Adeline punched me on the shoulder. “Let’s be honest, you do enough watching my ass for the both of us,” she said and took off through the left tunnel.

Finn sidled up to me and bumped me with his elbow. “Can’t blame you for that. It’s a phenomenal ass.”

“I heard that!” Adeline called from the tunnel.

Finn blew out a breath and smiled at me. “Mujer picante, just how I like ‘em.”

He raced off into the center tunnel while I took a right.

I slunk through the tunnel like a thief in the night, keeping my ears tuned to any new sound. But it wasn’t long before the staccato rhythm of gunfire sounded from behind me. It echoed throughout the entire tunnel complex, and if the earlier weapons fire hadn’t ruined any chance of stealth, it was definitely ruined now.

“To hell with it,” I said, and quickened my pace.

I encountered another Charade Beast further on, but it fell after two quick bursts. As it dropped, it clipped me in its death throes, chipping a neat chunk off my health as it crashed against the concrete wall, leaving a deep gash across my stomach.

Health: 325/385

Ailment: Major Bleeding

-25 HP per Minute

Damn, a couple of inches closer, and I’d be picking my entrails off the ground. That was sloppy.

I staunched the bleeding as best I could with some gauze and medical tape in the first aid kit I’d brought from home, but the wound stung with every step I took.

First Aid Kit (Low Grade): 2/3 Uses

Ailment: Major Bleeding Cured

Ah, good to know. I can only use it a few more times.

I was granted a break, and I didn’t run into more beasts for about ten minutes.

The tunnel was empty for a good bit before it split at a T-junction.

Shit. Which way do I go?

I chose the right hallway again and started walking.

It was a much shorter route than I took to get here, and I reached the end a few minutes later. It ended in a large open room that looked like an old, decommissioned cistern. A closed-off tube in the ceiling all but confirmed it. Just past the open room was another concrete tunnel like the one I’d come from, but to get there, I’d have to deal with the four Charade Beasts first.

They meandered around, unconcerned about my nascent intrusion and completely ignored my presence. Large, galvanized steel columns were in rows of six spread out around the chamber, which held up the ceiling.

If I could blow the supports, I could kill them all at once, but I’ve got nothing even remotely explosive. Tried and true kiting method it is.

Lead them one by one into the tunnel at my back and pick them off at my leisure.

I knelt and steadied my rifle, waiting for the opportune moment. I wanted to take two down before they noticed my presence here, but it meant waiting for them to get close enough to let it happen. After a few minutes, two of the bastards slid side by side and presented their heads to me.

I squeezed the trigger as fast as I could and unloaded my entire magazine into them. I don’t know which of my thirty bullets did the trick, but by the time I clicked on empty, the Charade Beasts were headless masses of riddled flesh.

Gunsmoke curled and stung my eyes, making them water. I’d only closed them for a second, but when I opened them, one crab closed the distance on me. A red claw entered my vision, and I sidestepped as it lunged at me, but it was faster and sliced a shallow groove down the length of my arm.

Health: 290/385

Ailment: Minor Bleeding

-10 HP per Minute

Not again! The wound stung and bled freely, dripping crimson over my wrist and through my fingers as it dribbled to the ground and soaked into my coat. At least I’m wearing black. Now, if only I’d worn my brown pants.

My M4 was dry, and I didn’t have any time to reload, so I drew the Glock from my pocket and fired twice. The shots were chaotic and didn’t come close to the thing’s face.

But it bought me half a second while the crab backed up. I kept the pistol in my right hand and tried to see if I could activate Demon Claws, but only for my left hand.

After a brief hiccup, the skill activated, and the slight drain from my chest only flowed into my left side. I fired the pistol and rushed the crab. My shots did nothing to damage the beast, but they let me get close enough to attack with my claw.

I sunk my hand deep into its ugly carapace and used the hard shell to push myself up and into its face. They weren’t intelligent beasts, but it still knew that it couldn’t kill me without skewering itself, and I used that second of hesitation to blow its brains out the back of its head.

I shoved it with all my strength and rode the Charade Beast down and took aim at the final crab coming up the steel ramp to the corridor. I didn’t know how many shots I’d used in the fight, but I took careful aim and fired three times.

I nailed all three shots into its head, and it popped like a water balloon filled with mustard. Though I backed up enough to avoid the worst of it.

My heart pounded loud in my chest after the fight, my hands shook, and I sagged against the concrete ramp that led into the cistern.

Feels like I just ran a marathon. The immediate rush of adrenaline from battle slowly bled out of me but didn’t fade entirely. I’m going to need a nap after this.

I went and retrieved my rifle from where I’d dropped it and reloaded both it and my Glock.

After I stowed my weapons, I took out the gauze again, along with some aspirin and a caffeine pill. It wouldn’t do much, but even a little bit would be a godsend. I wrapped my arm, and the bleeding debuff went away.

First Aid Kit (Low Grade): 1/3 Uses

Shit, I’m going to need to be careful or see if I can find a better health kit soon. We’re going to need medical supplies if we hope to survive.

While I was waiting for the caffeine to kick in, I pulled up my Mantle.

Combat Results!

8 Killed (Charade Beasts): 784 Exp!

Experience Boost (+5%): 40 Exp!

Total Gain: 824 Exp!

AC Earned: 200!

Level Up!

Well, hell. That’s not bad for half an hour’s work.

Though the massacre of Finn’s comrades was fresh in my mind, I realized how lucky I was to face them in such confined spaces.

I’d leveled up, so I opened my page to view my stats.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 276/350 (385)

Level: 5

Exp: 17/572

30 Stat Points Available!

Skill Upgrade Available!

New Skills Available!

Skill Point: 1

Skill point? My shaking hands and tired eyes tempered my excitement. I fought a yawn while I tried to keep from falling asleep then and there. I’ll deal with it after my stats.

I pulled up my stat page next and paused.

Stat Page

Strength: 20

Constitution: 15

Perception: 0

Endurance: 0

Agility: 0

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 0

While my current stats were solid, there were still a lot of zeros, and in the city, it seemed that I would be getting into a lot more scrapes. Leaving the stats as they were to focus on health and strength would only backfire in the long run. I needed to start increasing my other stats if I wanted to stay alive.

I definitely don’t want to try Min/Maxing with a system that I’m unfamiliar with. I’d rather be a jack-of-all-trades than a glass cannon. And I’ve already seen how being slow can get me killed quickly, so Agility is a must. What about Perception? Usually, that’s for Rogues and Assassins, though sensing traps and other dangers before they can ambush me seems a vital skill to have.

Endurance puzzled me. Logic dictated that it had something to do with stamina, but I didn’t know what all that entailed, whether it would make me fitter or if there were skills associated with it.

Might just hold off on that for the time being.

Charisma seemed most promising. Mr. Mitchells had said that it gave a boost to experience gain, which was invaluable.

Well-Rested will wear off eventually, and I’d rather not lose that boost.

It took a few minutes to sort out my thoughts, but when I had, I glanced once more at my stats before I solidified my decision.

I had thirty points available. Ten went to Agility, ten to Perception, and finally ten to Charisma.

When I was done, my stats looked a whole lot better.

Stat Page

Strength: 20

Constitution: 15

Perception: 10

Endurance: 0

Agility: 10

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 10

When I finished, I groaned as sleep called my name.

I glanced at the skill point I had available and debated on using it, but after I’d spent so much time debating my stats, decision fatigue had worn me out, and I wanted nothing more than a nap. I decided to hold off for the time being.

It can wait until after I’m out of the decrepit and smelly cavern. Get your ass up.

It took a few moments, but I eventually picked up my tired bones and surveyed the cistern. After a cursory search, all I found was a breeding ground. Small egg clutches in the dampest part of the cistern. They were gray and lumpy, about the size of a football, and were clustered in groups of four or five.

Need to find some way to dispose of them, if only I had some Molotovs. Though Adeline has that nifty little fire spell, bet that could burn them out.

I could either push on ahead or head back and check the other tunnel on the side of the cistern. I have no idea how far that tunnel goes. It’s been years since I’ve been back here. Might want to hold off for now and come back with the others.

I turned around and headed back the way I came and took the left path this time. It flowed back the way we’d all come for a few minutes until I reached another junction in the labyrinth.

Let’s pick another random direction and hope I don’t get lost.

There were over half a dozen exits to the Sewers, and almost every tunnel led to an entrance or a room with an exit via a maintenance hatch. The only trouble would be if we had to go through the prohibition tunnels. Those had a ton of dead ends designed to confuse people.

Instead of standing around trying to decide, I turned right and pushed on. I knew I picked the right direction when I came across dead Charade Beasts a few minutes in. Their heads were nothing but mush with yellow blood dripping out, and I tried to avoid stepping in as much as I could while moving forward.
There were short gunfire bursts just ahead of me, and I sped up to reach whoever was shooting.

Rounding the bend in the tunnel, I found Finn engaged with three Charade Beasts of his own. The tunnel widened and split into two separate corridors, which meant that more than one beast could attack him at once.

Two were on him while the third crab waited in the wings for its turn at bat. I was about to run in and help, but Finn didn’t look afraid. He grinned from ear to ear as he kept his rifle fire in short bursts, all while pushing the two beasts back into their friend.

“Gotcha!”

Finn reared back like he was about to throw a baseball, and a small glowing blue ball formed in his hand. It pulsed with ethereal light and sped up the longer he held it. He backed up and tossed the ball into the center of the three crabs.

He turned and sprinted away from them and noticed me. “Run!”

I did just that, turning and hightailing it out of there as an enormous explosion rocketed through the tunnel, sending a wave of dust towards us. I coughed as debris filled my vision and lungs and wiped my face.

“Ugh, Phantom Grenade?” I asked, spitting out the chalky dust that settled on my tongue.

“Badass, right?”

“I’ll say.” I stood and offered him my hand, which he took.

I hauled him to his feet and dusted a thick patch of concrete crumbs off his shoulder.

He jerked his thumb back towards the crabs. ”Just wait till you see what it does up close.”

I followed him back to see that “effective” was an understatement.

All three of the Charade Beasts were dead, blown into unrecognizable chunks of meat and blood. The concrete tunnel had cracked and shattered from the force of the explosion, and there were dozens of gallons of beast blood painting every inch of the space. Scraps of meat and carapace stuck to the ceiling and walls, and I fought not to hurl at the sight.

“You get used to it,” Finn said, and slapped me on the back.

“It looks like someone dumped gallons of mustard over an equal number of gallons of crab paste. And now, I can never eat either of those things ever again.”

“You mean you haven’t tried monster meat? It’s surprisingly delicious,” he said with a straight face.

“You’re joking, right?”

“Of course I am. Have you smelled that shit? Ugh. No thank you.”

“You have a strange sense of humor, y’know that?”

“Coming from the man who’s made not one but two cartoon references in the last hour? There’s a limit, man, and you’re almost at yours,” he said, smiling as he ran his hands roughly through what little hair he had, dislodging even more dust particles.

“Touché.”

We both stared at each other for a solid second before we burst into a fit of laughter. It was much needed at that moment for both of us, and I doubled over, clutching at my side.

“Told you, Hermano. You gotta enjoy the little things, cuz this shit piles up fast, and we’re going to be neck-deep before it’s all over.”

I was about to agree when a faint scream and a bark of gunfire split the air. Both of us turned at the sound and stared at each other for half a second.

Adeline!

Chapter 10- The Charade King

We both ran full sprint towards the gunfire as fast as our legs could carry us. We’d killed most of the monsters in our path already, but there were still more to deal with. Not caring about the ammo loss, I switched to full auto and just hosed down anything in our path. I wasted dozens of bullets and only killed a few Charade Beasts.

I clumsily reloaded on the move, almost dropping the magazine as I dug it from my satchel. I slapped it home and chambered a round as we followed the trail of charred corpses and ash piles Adeline left in her wake.

It only took us a minute to find her.

Finn and I reached the end of the tunnels and entered a partially collapsed red brick building. A cracked water pipe overhead spilled brackish water down the metal and brick. It had worn them down over the years and cracked, falling inward to reveal a previously hidden section of the prohibition tunnels.

Adeline was hiding inside.

It was an old storeroom for booze. Seven or eight large wooden casks sat abandoned in the corner of the room on the dirt floor. Though they’d once held illegal liquor, they’d been left to decay and rot in the damp.

The heavy scent of mildew and wood rot filled the air and soaked into my lungs with every breath.

The room itself was large and had once housed hundreds of thousands of gallons of contraband, but now was nearly deserted except for a plethora of nests burrowed into the ground along with several Charade Beasts slithering around.

I looked deeper in and found why Adeline had screamed.

At the very back of the room was what I could only describe as the Charade Beast Alpha.

It was easily two or three times the size of the others, its long gray and green tail stretching out around the room, scraping against the brick walls. Its crab-like body was far more humanoid than any of the others. Its body was red in hue, but the hard carapace that covered the others was thinner and looked like an imitation of body armor rather than a natural occurrence.

The beast’s head was also different. Though it still bore the same dead black eyes the others had, it had a rough human face or at least a facsimile of one: a malformed jawline and a disproportionate nose in its features.

Inspect.

Monster (Boss-Tier): Charade King

Health: 1200/1200

Mana: 400/400

Exp: 487

AC: 200

Mana? It has magic?

Shit, that thing’s a tank. And it can cast spells. This isn’t going to be an easy fight.

As I studied it, Adeline glanced over at us as she crouched behind a crumbling brick wall and motioned us over. She bumped the stock of her shotgun against the wall, and the thump sounded loud through the storeroom.

The Charade Beasts all turned at the sound as Adeline cursed.

“Fuck this,” she said and barreled around the corner, firing at the closest beast.

The buckshot shredded the entire top half of its face, spraying foulness in the air as a few pellets ricocheted off the brick behind it. Most thudded harmlessly into the dirt, but one scratched a thin groove along Adeline’s outer thigh.

Blood immediately soaked into her jeans as she stumbled as she put weight on the leg.

“Shit,” Finn said. “We need to get moving. They’ll frenzy her when they smell the blood.”

Adeline cocked the shotgun as another two sniffed the air and turned, slithering toward her, their tails kicking up a small sandstorm of dust from the floor. They hadn’t noticed us yet, but likely would any second now, and we had to get moving.

“Take out the mobs first before we focus on fighting the boss. They’ll just slow us down and waste our time if we try to go after the boss right away. Can you use your Phantom Grenade again?”

“Yeah, I have enough mana for two more charges.”

Mana again, why don’t I have a mana bar?

As if the Mantle read my mind, a new bar appeared in the corner of my vision underneath my health bar. It was bright blue with the word mana on it.

Mana: 275/350

Oh, there it is. Why is it just appearing now? Damn you, Callisto, for making me figure this shit out the hard way!

I assessed the room in an instant and pointed at a spot just ahead of Adeline. “Alright, throw a grenade behind the group far enough that Adeline won’t get hurt, and when they’re stunned and injured from the blast, we’ll rush in.”

“Understood!”

I readied my rifle and waited for the fireworks.

Adeline scrambled back as the beasts approached, keeping her shots as tight as possible. She fired again and struck another in the face as it lunged for her. Blood and brains splattered across the others as it died and tumbled to the ground with a cloud of dust.

Adeline aimed her shotgun again and pulled the trigger. It jammed. She tossed it down and held her palm out, ready to use her magic.

Fire. Shit!

“No flames, Adeline, get clear!”

She paused for a second and dropped her hand, going for her sidearm. She pulled her pistol and started firing as she backed up toward us.

Finn primed his skill, but there were a dozen coming after her. Finn chucked his grenade just past the group, and I shouted at Adeline. “Get to cover!”

She stared at the glowing blue ball as it tumbled to the dirt and didn’t hesitate before throwing herself behind a nearby brick wall and scrambling to cover herself.

Finn and I ducked behind the concrete walls and covered our ears as the Phantom Grenade went off.

The explosion rocked our world as a heavy wave of pressure rolled over us, sending a massive amount of dust scattering through the hole along with numerous bits of gore and viscera.

Even though it was my second time experiencing it, it still took a moment to reorient myself after having my bell rung so thoroughly.

Doubt I’ll ever get used to it.

I rubbed at my ear, hoping the ringing would go away as I held out my hand to Finn.

He took it, and I hauled him to his feet.

“Let’s go see what the damage is,” I said.

“After you,” he replied with a cheeky grin.

The first thing my eyes searched for was Adeline. She’d been closer to the blast than we had, and I wanted to make sure she was alright. She was still behind the wall, only a little worse for wear. She’d been far enough away that it hadn’t hurt her.

The weak brick wall she’d hidden behind had been struck by the torso of one of the Charade Beasts and buckled under the weight. It cracked and toppled over, missing Adeline by a few inches.

She stood and gave us both the finger as she dusted herself off. “Well, that sucked.”

I chuckled and ignored her, looking at the damage that had been done to the dozen or so beasts in the room.

For the monsters who were right next to it, it was their executioner. At least four or five of them died outright from the blast itself and were in bloody little pieces around the room. Several sizeable chunks of brick and wood from the ceiling had fallen and did minor damage themselves. However, most of the Charade Beasts were still alive, if a little worse for wear.

They’d been squeezed together, and some of them acted as meat shields for the others, inadvertently protecting them from fatal harm.

As the blood and dust settled, we swept into the room. The grenade had been our opening and had given us everything we needed. The only plan was to take out the Charade Beasts before we took on the king, and even if Adeline hadn’t been part of the discussion, she followed our lead perfectly as we opened fire on the wounded Charade Beasts.

I crouched and raised my M4, switching it back to semi-auto. I squeezed the trigger three times in rapid succession. Two rounds went high as my hands shook from the adrenaline flooding my system, smashing into the brick ceiling and sending chips flying off as they burrowed into it. I lowered my sights and sent my third round punching through the nose of a Charade Beast missing half its arm.

Finn and Adeline were methodical in their brand of death. Finn kept firing with his rifle, his shots grouped into tight three-round bursts. He missed with a few shots, but most struck home in the skulls of the beasts with practiced efficiency.

While Adeline let loose with her crimson fireballs, now that the dust settled. She hurled them and burned three Charade Beasts alive before the flame in the center of her palm fizzled out, and she went back to her pistol.

I covered her as a creature slithered across the room quickly and raised its claw while she was reloading. I fired quickly, making sure Adeline was out of my line of fire while I pumped round after round into its forehead.

Its skull obliterated under my assault as Adeline slammed home a fresh magazine.

She gave me a nod and raised her gun, firing at a monster across the room.

There were three left by then, and we each took one, slaughtering them in a handful of seconds.

I dropped the nearly dry magazine and reloaded while the symphony of destruction we’d rendered with our guns settled. Our rifles had suppressors, but Adeline’s pistol didn’t, and the echo of the gunshots lingered in my ears.

That was damned impressive. Even considering we haven’t figured out how to work together as a team yet. Adeline and I need to talk about her class and how best to use her skills when this is over.

Having Finn as backup is great, but he’s not part of our team. He’ll be leaving after this.

When everything settled, and we all had full magazines, we double-checked that we’d killed every Charade Beast in the old storeroom. The king still sat curled along the far wall. He hadn’t so much as moved as we slaughtered the others. Instead, he watched us impassively with his dead, obsidian gaze.

“What the hell’s his problem?” Adeline asked.

“I’m going to go with the fact that we just butchered his underlings,” I said with a wry smile. “It’d piss me off if someone killed my underlings.”

“Watch it,” Adeline growled with no heat. “Call me an underling again, and I’ll shove my shotgun where the sun don’t shine.”

I held a hand up, fighting back a laugh. “Okay, okay. Finn, you’re an underling. Adeline just got promoted to minion.”

“That means she’s my boss. Hot. I’m in,” he said, smiling wide as he kept his rifle trained on the king who hadn’t moved.

If it was just going to sit there, it gave me time to think and plan.

If this were a video game, the boss would be locked in this room, just waiting for us to get close enough to him. This is real life, though, which means he isn’t zone locked. They can clearly travel to the surface. Which means he’s waiting for us to come to him.

It’s a trap.

“Keep your guard up. We’re in for a nasty fight,” I said.

They sidled up to stand on either side of me while we took a moment to figure out what to do. “He hasn’t moved once since we got here and is just staring at us like he’s waiting for us to attack. I don’t like this, not one bit,” Adeline said.

“Trap?” Finn asked.

“Has to be,” Adeline replied, and turned to me. “What do you think, Kill?”

“It’s obviously a trap.”

Adeline frowned, her hand going to her chin while she stared at the giant creature. “What do we do about it?”

“We trigger it on our terms. With my skill, I’m a close-range fighter more than a ranged one, but by my guess, you’re out of mana, right, Ade?”

She nodded. “Bone dry.”

“Why don’t we just pull back and rain lead on him from the tunnel?” Finn asked, thumbing back to the giant hole in the wall.

I shook my head. “If we aggro him to the tunnels, we’re basically trapped with the three of us trying to shoot over each other to hit the same target. And he has magic. That’s an unknown factor that could prove lethal in an enclosed space. I’d rather fight where we have room to maneuver.”

“Good point, so what’s our plan?”

I glanced up at the ceiling, and a devious thought came over me. “I have an idea, but I need you to back me up. Finn, hold your last Phantom Grenade till I say so.”

They looked at me sideways, clearly expecting an explanation, but I just smiled as I strolled through into the warehouse like I didn’t have a care in the world.

Right into the Charade King's hands.

I stepped beyond two brick support columns that had seen better days. Water dripped down them, splashing onto the damp earth littered with chipped and cracked chunks of brick. As soon as my foot sunk into the moist ground, I triggered the trap that was waiting for me.

A blindingly bright, semi-transparent blue wall appeared behind me with a snap and sealed me off from Finn and Adeline.

There it is.

With Inspect active, I knew exactly what the spell had cost the king.

Monster (Boss-Tier): Charade King

Health: 1200/1200

Mana: 200/400

Exp: 487

AC: 200

I knew there was a trap waiting. Better to have sprung it myself than trap the others with me. Though that begs the question.

How the hell do I get rid of it?

The king’s mana pool dropped a point every second, so it was draining him to keep the barrier up, but even a handful of minutes seemed like an eternity.

He has so much freaking health!

“Well, you’ve trapped me here. What now, ugly?” I asked, my rifle raised.

A deep, guttural laugh came from the king, and he inclined his head towards me. “From one king to another, I bid you welcome, Demon Lord Killian.”

Oh fuck. It talks.

Which was the second biggest concern I had.

It knew who I was. What I was.

“You know me?”

“Of course, our god told all his creations of your acceptance of the mantle. Though, I did not expect to see you here in my domain, killing my subjects.”

I walked forward a bit, which gave me a second to consider his words.

I wasn’t expecting human intelligence.

“Your domain? This city is my home, which makes it my domain. And your subjects have had no qualms about attacking me and mine. I came here to kill them for their transgressions.”

The king seemed to ponder that for a moment, rubbing his chin like a human would if he were lost in thought.

That’s it, bluff your ass off!

“We were not told of your location, Demon Lord, just that you had arisen. I do not wish for conflict between us. If this land falls under your holdings, then I must apologize. T’was not my intention to interfere with your great work.”

Okay, he seems amenable to conversation. Let’s keep him talking, see if he’ll be more loose-lipped than Callisto.

“I accept your apology, though I need some information. It’s of little significance and something I don’t wish to trouble our god with.”

He inclined his head in a low bow. “I would be honored to assist the Demon Lord in whatever manner he wishes.”

Think, what information do you need most right now?

I kept my rifle cradled in my arms, finger off the trigger while I paced in front of the king. I didn’t think he would attack me, and I needed to gather my thoughts in order.

What I need right now is a goal. We have a loose idea to grind levels, but that’s it. I need a concrete plan in mind because mopping up monsters around Grissom isn’t going to cut it for what I have to do.

I need to get strong and quickly. I need to go to where the highest concentration of monsters are and start power leveling.

I stopped pacing and faced the king. “Where is the largest cluster of Callisto’s chosen at this moment?”

“The bulk of his forces are east, along the coast. Where most of the human population for this continent resides.”

That matches what Adeline told me. She said New York was overrun.

It makes sense too. Callisto wouldn’t drop the majority of his monsters in Montana. So, New York, Boston, and the surrounding states. Most will have converged there and then spread out as they slaughtered the population. If most of the monsters are there, we should start working our way to them, getting stronger the closer we get.

“Thank you for your help, King,” I said, keeping a close eye on his mana bar.

“But of course, Lord Killian. It is my deepest wish that you succeed in your goal. Since you have claimed this territory under your domain, I will gather my subjects and depart. There is a nearby unclaimed town of Colburn. I will head there with my brood.”

Can’t let you do that, fugly. I won’t let you or any of your kind take another human life.

It was nearly empty, and any second now, the barrier would fall. “You have been most helpful, but there is one last matter to discuss.”

”And what would that be?”

I flipped the safety selector to automatic and rested my finger on the trigger.

Three. Two. One. Now!

”Your imminent destruction, you walking STD.”

I raised my M4 and held down the trigger. The barrier dropped with a pop. I peppered his face and torso with thirty rounds in four seconds as he bellowed in rage, throwing his clawed hands up to protect his head.

My gun clicked empty, and I hit the mag release and backed the hell away from the king, stopping in the middle of the room.

Finn and Adeline jogged up next to me, guns blazing. They kept up their fire as I reloaded.

The king dropped low to the ground and rushed me.

”Finn, throw your grenade at my feet, now!”

He hesitated for a millisecond but recovered quickly and primed it in his hand before he lobbed it right at me.

I had only seconds to get this right, and if I was too slow, well, there wouldn’t be much of me left to care one way or the other.

As the king got closer, I unloaded into him again, going for his eyes and hoping he would take the bait. My bullets angered him, and he did exactly what I hoped and stopped to cover his face.

The king halted, and I sprinted to cover as the Phantom Grenade went off.

My world went white as a wave of intense pressure and heat swept over me. The shock wave lifted me off the ground and slammed me hard against the crumbling brick wall.

Pain became my world as my bones snapped like cardboard. The side of my face met brick, and then there was nothing.

When I woke up, my body throbbed and ached like it’d been shoved through a meat grinder. Everything hurt, hurt so bad I should’ve been unconscious from the pain alone, but I wasn’t.

Blood ran in rivulets down my face, and I couldn’t properly work my jaw or neck.

Ailment: Critically Wounded

-75 HP per Minute

Trying to stand or do anything was excruciating, but I lifted myself enough to roll over on my back as I stared at the ceiling. I did my best to tilt my neck, and what awaited me was surprising.

I gaped at the spectacle before me. Time had stopped. The explosion was still going off in the center of the room. The Phantom Grenade did its job perfectly and detonated right under the first one Finn had thrown.

The already cracked and weakened ceiling could not stand against another explosion and had caved in under the blast, sending a ton of debris and chunks of wooden beams and brick tumbling down onto the Charade King. Time stopped right before the entire mass crushed the king flat.

My plan worked…for the most part. I just wasn’t fast enough to get out of the way in time, even with my increased Agility.

“My, my. That was a bold and idiotic plan. Day two, and you nearly blow yourself up. Not inspiring a lot of confidence, my Demon Lord,” a familiar voice spoke from nowhere.

”Well, it was the only plan I could come up with that didn't end up in a straight-up slug match between us.”

”And look where it’s gotten you,” Callisto said, laughter in his voice.

Without my consent, my health bar appeared super-sized in my vision.

Health: 34/385

Callisto materialized in front of me with a smug grin and crossed his arms while he floated just above me. ”If I hadn’t stepped in just now, a large chunk of brick would have been flung out by the blast and crushed your head like a soda can.”

I didn’t even have the strength to be grateful, but I still mumbled my thanks.

“Don’t thank me. This is going to cost you.” He grinned. “One favor for your life seems a worthwhile trade.”

“And if I say no?”

Callisto chuckled. “Then I revert time and you die. Neither of us wants that. So, take the deal.”

“Fine,” I mumbled.

He grinned. “Excellent. That’s one favor out of five. And I know you had a plan, but I still need you to be smarter than this. I can’t save you from Death again. She won’t forgive a second intrusion to her domain.”

”Why go so far for me?” I asked while I attempted to stand. ”Why save me?”

He flashed a saccharine smile. “Lots of reasons. My main one is that I need you alive to do your job. If you die, I have to find your replacement, and you don’t know what I went through finding you. All that does is waste my time, which is so boring.” His smile twisted as he spoke next, becoming dark, infinitely crueler. “I’m also intrigued by you. I want to see how long you’ll manage to keep the balance going. I want to see that moment when you break down from the weight of your responsibilities. I want to see the kind of man you really are.”

Callisto looked me over, a quick up and down tilt of his head. ”Oh, you might want to use your skill point that you ignored earlier, before time starts again. I think you’ll find the abilities useful for you.

“And just as a heads up, if you increase Constitution and Wisdom, they’ll automatically replenish themselves.”

“Thanks for the tip. What’ll it cost me?” I asked as I pulled up my Mantle.

Combat Results!

5 Killed (Charade Beasts): 490 Exp!

Experience Boost (+10%): 49 Exp!

Total Gain: 539 Exp!

AC Earned: 125!

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 34/350 (385)

Mana: 275/350

Level: 5

Exp: 556/572

Skill Point: 1

Okay, I ignored it earlier, but that might have been a mistake. I shouldn’t have let my exhaustion let laziness take control. I need to figure a way out of this, and quickly. I can’t get hit again.

Now onto my skills.

Skills Page

Skill Upgrade: Demon Claws < Demon Form

New Skill: Grasp of the Abyss

Current Skills

Demon Claws (Rank 1): Elongates hands to wicked points sharp enough to sever bone and steel.

Damage: 50-75 (Clawing) (Scales with Strength)

Cost: 75 Mana

Duration: 3 Minutes

Cooldown: 1 Minute

New Skills

Demon Form (First Form): Grants wielder the first form of the Demon Lord. Boosts Strength, Constitution, Endurance, Perception, Wisdom, and Agility by 20 for the duration. Boosts all spell damage by 20% for the duration.

Cost: 150 Mana

Duration: 5 Minutes

Cooldown: 30 Minutes

Grasp of the Abyss (Rank 1): Allows the user to bind a single target for the spell's duration.

Damage: 10 per Second (Abyssal)

Cost: 50 Mana

Duration: 60 Seconds

Cooldown: Instant (Only 1 active at a time)

Both skills were amazing, but I knew instantly which one I would pick.

”I would choose Demon Form personally. It’s going to end up being your most powerful ability,” Callisto said.

“So now you’re just throwing advice at me. It must be my birthday,” I said, deadpan. “Though it was the one I was going to choose anyway. Grasp of the Abyss doesn’t seem that useful right now.”

“Give it a few ranks, and it’ll be incredibly powerful, but right now, you are correct.”

I scoffed at him and stood up. My injuries were severe, and if I didn’t want to keel over and give up the ghost, I had to take down the Charade King. If I leveled up, I could heal my injuries.

I selected Demon Form, and the name appeared in front of me.

Skill: Demon Form (First Form)

Wonder how I go about unlocking the other forms?

A question for another time as Callisto vanished with a wink and time started to slowly return to normal. Callisto was nice enough to allow me to have enough time to run back to Finn and Adeline before time restarted.

The heavy wooden support beams splintered and cracked from the grenade and couldn’t support the weight of the building. It succumbed to the blast, dropping nearly the entire upper floor of the building and some of the wall.

But even with all the damage, the Charade King was still alive.

Most of the floor landed directly on him, crushing him under its tremendous weight. His pink flesh bled freely from too many gashes, and his tail had nearly been severed from a falling beam. But despite all his injuries, he still attempted to stand.

Using Inspect, I got the gist of his situation.

Health: 232/1200

His health rapidly redlined, but he still wasn’t out of the fight just yet.

I tilted my head to look at my companions. “Both of you stay here,” I told them. “Let me handle this.”

They both nodded, staring at the gruesome scene in front of us. The king grabbed handfuls of the earth as he attempted to drag himself free from the prison I’d dropped on him. I climbed through the wall and limped towards him, activating my Demon Form for the first time.

My mana drained as it kicked on. The blue bar in the corner of my vision fell by a hundred and fifty points. Instead of spreading to just my hands, the flow of energy coursed throughout my entire body. It was unparalleled. Strength flooded through me as the lingering pain vanished, my sight cleared, and each step I took was now self-assured, confident.

I strode to the former Charade King, who was now at my mercy.

The skin above my eyes itched furiously, and I absentmindedly scratched to find small protrusions rising from my skull. They were smooth and curved, about two inches wide and double that tall, ending in points near the top of my head.

Horns! I have horns!

Though they weren’t the only new addition.

When I held my hand up, my fingers were normal, but I also had a version of Demon Claws in this form. My fingernails were long, like claws, but black as night and deadly sharp.

So, horns and talons. Bet I look like a freak right now.

I stood before the king, just out of reach from his claws.

“Damn you!” he shouted, spitting fury and blood at me. “Why? Why did you betray me?”

He swiped at me with his pincer but missed, and I kicked his outstretched arm. I was much stronger than I expected as his carapace crunched under my heel. The king howled in pain but could no longer support himself on only his one hand and fell to the ground.

“You want the truth?” I asked as I sunk my claws into the back of his neck. “It’s because you’re a monster,” I said and pulled with all my strength.

The Charade King’s head came free with a sickening tear. Blood, sinew, and muscle clung to his twisted spine as I ripped his head from his shoulders amid a whole mess of blood.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Charade King): 487 Exp!

Experience Boost (+10%): 48 Exp!

Total Gain: 535 Exp!

AC Earned: 200!

Level Up!

System Notice: Grissom City threat level has decreased!

Grissom City Threat Level: 5

System Notice: The Charade King has been defeated!

Beast Skill Available: Barrier

Barrier (Rank 1): Creates a force field in front of the user ten feet wide. Impervious to all physical and magical damage for the duration.

Cost: 200 Mana (2 Mana per Second)

Duration: Until canceled or user runs out of mana

Cooldown: 1 Hour

What’s this? A Beast skill? I can get skills from the kings I kill?

That line of thought was tantalizing, but I waved the screen aside. I had much more important things to worry about at the minute. Though the stat boost added by Demon Form had given me some extra health and mana, I was still suffering under the critically wounded ailment.

Okay, let's deal with my rapidly redlining health before I die.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 159/350 (605)

Mana: 325/350 (550)

Level: 6

Exp: 519/688

15 Stat Points Available!

I took Callisto’s advice and quickly put points into Constitution, bringing it to twenty. I added five points to Strength and Agility since they seemed the most useful at the moment, bringing Strength to twenty-five and Agility to fifteen.

Stat Page

Strength: 25

Constitution: 20

Perception: 10

Endurance: 0

Agility: 15

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 10

My health soared as it adjusted to my new stats. I now had four hundred health, which was boosted to four-forty with the Well-Fed bonus, even more so with Demon Form active, but I didn’t count it towards my true health.

So, each point brings it up by ten. That’s good to know.

When I was finished and not in danger of dying, I dropped the head of the deceased Charade King to the ground and turned back to the others with a grin, thrilled to be alive.

“Anyone got any good crab jokes left? I know there’s got to be one about sushi that we haven’t made yet.”

Neither of them laughed. Adeline stared with mild confusion, but Finn looked like I’d just killed his puppy in front of him.

“You guys okay?”

“Killian…you have horns…and your eyes…what are you?”

I turned to Adeline. “What’s up with my eyes?”

“They’re solid black. It’s kind of freaky.”

Finn turned to Adeline, mouth agape and hands in the air. “How are you not freaking out right now? Killian, answer my question. You owe me that much!”

He had a point. I did owe him. And that fact overshadowed the voice in my head, telling me to keep my secret to myself.

But I can’t. Finn’s gone through hell with us. We’ve fought side by side together. He’s proven himself trustworthy, and he at least deserves the truth. What happens after that…well, we’ll just have to see.

I sighed, running a hand over my horns as I walked back to them. Finn took an involuntary step back and looked like he was ready to flee down the tunnel in fear.

“You’re right, Finn. I do owe you the truth,” I said, meeting his frightened eyes. “I’m the Demon Lord.”

Chapter 11- Fate and Fear

Finn’s face went ashen as he comprehended what I’d told him. From disbelief to crushing realization when he put it together that I wasn’t lying to him.

He backed away from me, scraping the side of the concrete tunnel, and was half a second from fleeing when I dropped my Demon Form.

“It’s just a class, Finn. Just because I’m the Demon Lord doesn’t mean I’m a bad person.”

“Bullshit! Killian, you’re going to destroy the world! No good person could ever do something like that. I trusted you,” he nearly shouted as he glanced from me to Adeline. “I trusted both of you.”

He turned and ran away from us into the tunnels the way we came.

“Finn, wait!” I called after him.

I was met with silence. I took a step, poised to run after him, to explain myself, but Adeline put a hand on my shoulder and held me back, shaking her head. “Best to give him some space. I’ll go talk to him,” she said and flew down the tunnel after Finn, leaving me alone in the Sewers.

I stared after them as their footfalls faded away to silence.

Damn it. Damn it all to hell!

I turned and slammed my fist into the side of the concrete wall as hard as I could and shouted as agony vibrated up my arm as my skin split and bones cracked.

“Son of a bitch!” I hissed and cradled my broken hand to my chest as I put my back to the wall and slid down it into misery.

Why won’t anyone give me the benefit of the doubt?

Why does everyone jump to the conclusion that I’m automatically a bad person just because of my class?

Do you think I wanted any of this? That I wanted to be branded a monster, the one who’s supposed to destroy the world?

I didn’t want this job, didn’t want the mantle or the Demon Lord class. I wanted to go home, bicker with Meghan, or watch TV with Dad. I wanted to see Omar and Sarah again.

I wanted my life back.

I’m not cut out to destroy the world. I’m eighteen, for God’s sake. I should be studying for college, not bringing about the apocalypse.

In less than a day, I’d gone from a gamer to the Demon Lord, and now I was killing monsters trying to level up enough to destroy the world.

It wasn’t funny. It was the furthest thing from funny, but I couldn’t help it. I laughed. I laughed so hard, and for so long, I couldn’t breathe. I laughed like a madman, and in that instant, I was mad. I had to laugh because if I didn’t, I’d have put the barrel of my gun in my mouth and ended my life.

But as much as I wanted to wallow in my anguish and let it swallow me whole, I couldn’t. I didn’t have time to sit around and feel sorry for myself.

I had a job to do.

Get over yourself, Killian. You don’t have a choice in this.

Either you destroy the world to save it or you lose everything.

No one is going to welcome you in this world, not if you tell them the truth. The old rules don’t apply anymore. Best get used to that right now.

I sighed and stood, flipping the safety off on my M4.

The quest we’d gotten was still active, and I wasn’t leaving the dungeon until it was complete.

Both of you left me alone down here.

Fine. I’ll finish it myself.

When I was away from the prohibition storehouse, I went deeper into the tunnels and methodically cleared every room. We had gotten most of the Charade Beasts, but I’d left several of their nests alive, and they couldn’t be allowed to spawn.

I started with the rooms I’d already cleared and went back into the cistern. I stomped on each of the egg sacs to prevent them from hatching into more Charade Beasts.

From there, I explored the rest of the tunnels for the next few hours alone. I found three more beasts in the sewers, but they were all scattered, which made picking them off a snap. I kept Demon Form active as often as I could, making killing the beasts easier than it had any right to be.

While I waited for Demon Form to cool down, I practiced more with the M4. It took a couple of hours and more than a few wasted bullets, but I at least got decent at hitting a moving target.

I knew I’d gotten the last one when I blew its head off and received several notifications in my Mantle.

Combat Results!

3 Killed (Charade Beasts): 294 Exp!

Experience Boost (+10%): 29 Exp!

Total Gain: 323 Exp!

AC Earned: 75!

Level Up!

Quest: Surf and Turf Completed!

Exp: 532!

Experience Boost (+10%): 53 Exp!

Total Gain: 585 Exp!

AC Earned: 250!

I stopped in the next room I came to and took a break. It was a maintenance room with a lot of different valves and metal tubes leading to God knows where, but it had a shaft that opened to a stairwell that would lead to street level. I hadn’t taken any damage since I’d broken my hand, and that had long since healed, but I was tired, and my arms ached with the fatigue of carrying the rifle and shifting to Demon Form and back.

I dug the energy bar Finn had given me and a bottle of water from my bag and devoured both quickly. As I ate, I leaned back on one of the pipes and sorted through my recent level-ups. I’d gotten the experience for killing the Charade King and the rest of the beasts infesting the Sewers, so that coupled with the quest reward put me in a pretty good position.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 400/400

Mana: 200/350

Level: 7

Exp: 739/790

15 Stat Points Available!

I was just a few shy of breaking through to level eight, but I wasn’t going to complain, not when I’d leveled up so much already.

Now to allocate my stats.

Wisdom boosted my mana, and since Demon Form took a good chunk to use, I probably needed to increase it.

Especially if I unlock Grasp of the Abyss or the Charade King’s Beast skill.

I could think of plenty of uses for an impenetrable barrier, but my choice would have to wait until I acquired more skill points.

With Wisdom being something I wanted to increase, I had more choices to make. I’d been slow fighting the Charade King so having more points in Agility would only help.

And it also seemed like there wasn’t a single stat I’d consider a dump stat. They were all necessary for survival. I just had to balance where to put my points, so I maximized my potential.

Endurance was still sitting at zero. But I’d yet seen a need to increase it. Strength and Constitution were fine for the time being. Agility, Perception, and Charisma were the ones I wanted to focus on this level up.

Five went to Wisdom, five to Agility, and then I had to debate on whether I wanted Perception or Charisma.

Can’t go wrong with that exp boost. I think Charisma is a must.

Stat Page

Strength: 25

Constitution: 20

Perception: 10

Endurance: 0

Agility: 20

Wisdom: 20

Charisma: 15

When I hit finalize, a rush like a hit of dopamine flooded my brain, and I forgot Finn had rejected me and Adeline had abandoned me to chase after him for a few minutes.

It wasn’t fair of me to blame Adeline for leaving. I knew that she only wanted to keep Finn from running off, but I still couldn’t help that it kind of felt like she’d chosen to go after him rather than stay with me.

Get over it. It’s the damn apocalypse.

My inner self was right, and I stuffed the First Strike energy bar wrapper inside the water bottle and tossed it down the tunnel. It skittered and rolled halfway down before stopping.

Don’t really have to be environmentally conscious anymore when I’m set to destroy the world. From breaking and entering to littering.

I feel like my crime spree has taken a nosedive.

The joke was stupid, but I cracked a smile.

Though I need to take stock of my supplies, I burned through a lot of ammo, and I dropped several magazines that I’ll have to retrieve.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 720 Coins

Food: 6 Day’s Supply

Water: 6 Day’s Supply

Ammo

.38 Special: 24 Rounds

9x19mm: 85 Rounds

5.56x45mm NATO: 240 Rounds

Additional Items

First Aid Kit (Low Grade): 1/3 Uses

Wow. I went through a lot of ammo. I’ll have to ration it better. It seems that I also lost the Well-Fed and Well-Rested buffs.

Damn. That Constitution boost certainly saved my life. And the Well-Rested buff is essential. I’ll have to stock up on more supplies. Though I have a lot of coins now. I still don’t know their value, but I bet I can buy more supplies when we find another vendor.

After sorting my Mantle and taking inventory, I went and retrieved my magazines. As I got back to the hatch, I sighed. I was ready to leave and face the consequences of telling Finn the truth. I opened the shaft door and headed up to the surface. The rusted metal door was locked, but a quick transformation later, and the lock shattered like ice under my fingers.

As I stepped out onto the sidewalk, the sun hung low in the sky, fat and orange, nestled against the horizon as a splash of purple crept in.

Huh, it’s later than I expected, probably four or five.

I pulled out my cell phone and went to check the time, only to find it dead.

Why am I even carrying this thing around anymore? I can’t call anyone, and even if I could, there is no one left who could call me.

I stood there staring at my phone, my demonic visage staring back at me.

Holy shit, I really do have black eyes. Adeline was right. That is freaky.

I gripped my phone tight and fought a curse. With a heavy sigh, I let the phone slip through my fingers and drop to the ground.

I didn’t need it anymore.

A far-off howl of some nightmare creature caused me to look up, and I realized I was standing out in the open in the middle of a dead street while the apocalypse was going on.

I need to find Adeline and Finn, or just Adeline, depending on how the conversation went.

We hadn’t set up a meeting point, but I headed back to the Starbucks, figuring that to be as logical a rendezvous as anywhere else.

It took another twenty minutes of crossing back alleys and side streets to reach the café, but I made it without stumbling across any monsters.

I doubled-checked that the street was clear and darted inside.

It was just as we’d left it, but no one was there when I arrived. I had nothing else to do but wait, so I shut the door behind me and went to put on a pot of coffee.

Half an hour and half a pot of coffee later, both Adeline and Finn walked in while I was in the middle of making some sandwiches. I’d found some English muffins and other meats and cheeses in the freezer, which was still operational, so I popped everything in the oven for a few minutes to defrost and then set out to make a mountainous chicken bacon ranch English muffin.

I glanced up when the pair arrived but didn’t speak and went back to making my sandwich and made them some while I was at it. I didn’t know their tastes, so I kept it simple as I tried to pick things I thought they’d like. When they were done, I brought the three plates out for all of us to the table. I sat and dug into my own without saying a word.

“Thanks, Killian,” Adeline said, giving me a small smile.

I nodded and chewed mechanically, barely tasting the food. When I was finished, I poured another cup of coffee and stared at the setting sun until someone other than me broke the silence.

After ten long minutes, Finn finally made a sound. He leaned back in his chair and stared at me for a few seconds, waiting for me to notice. When I didn’t respond, he coughed. I kept staring out the window.

“If you have something to say, Finn, spit it out,” I told him and took a sip of my coffee.

His eyes widened at my harsh tone. “Where’d that come from?”

“Where do you think it came from? I told you the truth because I owed you that much. We fought together, and I trust you. I didn’t want to lie to you. But I don’t owe you anything more than that. If you can’t accept what I am, then the door’s right there.”

“What the hell’s gotten into you? That was fucking uncalled for,” Adeline said.

I threw the half-empty coffee mug against the drywall. The cup shattered on impact and splashed coffee down the lime green wall. I tried to keep my anger in check, but I couldn’t as I stood from the barstool.

“No.” I jabbed a finger at Finn. “The look he gave me in the Sewers was fucking uncalled for. Like I wasn’t human. Like I was a monster.”

I’d tried to keep them contained in the tunnels, but I was drowning in my emotions, and I couldn’t stop them from spilling over.

“The two of you leaving me to fend for myself in a monster-infested dungeon was uncalled for,” I said, my voice bitter.

Adeline flinched, her eyes dropping as I looked at her.

“Since I walked out into this hellscape, I have done nothing but try to help, and yet I’ve been met with nothing but hatred and distrust.”

“What the fuck were you expecting?” Finn shouted, slamming his palms on the table hard enough to crack the vinyl and particleboard underneath. The pot of coffee on the table tipped over and dripped obsidian over the table. “You’re the Demon Lord! The one who’s supposed to bring about the end of the world. Who in their right mind would ever trust you?”

“Finn, that’s not fair. I told you, I didn’t trust him either, but you don’t know the whole story!” Adeline said, hastily coming to my defense.

I sighed. Most of the anger flooded out of me, leaving me exhausted. “You’re right. I had no expectations when Callisto showed up in my bedroom and told me I could either accept becoming the Demon Lord or I’d never see my family again. That everyone I’ve ever loved would disappear.

“I made the only choice I could.”

I walked away, and only once I was at the door did I look back. They were staring at me. Finn was wide-eyed with too many conflicting emotions on his face, and Adeline had concern and sadness playing in her eyes.

“I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t have a choice in the matter. But I refuse to apologize for it. Despite my original apprehension, I like you, Finn. I really do. But if you can’t deal with what I am, then I don’t want to see you here when I get back.”

I strode out the door. It shut behind me with a thud, and I went to find a place to cool off and to sort out my thoughts. The frigid air seeped into my lungs quickly as fog rolled with every breath I took. I buttoned my coat and picked a direction to walk in. I’d left my bag and rifle by the door in my haste to leave, but I still had my Glock, and I could always shift to Demon Form if need be.

The setting sun set the street alight with brushed flames cascading down the glass windows of the brick buildings overhead. I stood and stared at the purple and orange sky for a second before I turned left and started walking, lost in my head.

I didn’t really have a destination in mind, and even if it was beyond foolish of me to walk alone during an apocalypse, I didn’t care. I was angry and sad. More than that, I was utterly alone in the world.

Adeline is only with me because of her deal, and Finn is a second away from taking off. No one is truly on my side here.

I walked through downtown for a long while before I found myself at Grissom Park. It boasted nothing of material value and had been spared from the ravenous looting and mainly stood untouched.

The park was open, a field of dying grass and trees, a few colorful playgrounds for children, and a gravel walkway that circled the park for joggers. It was very peaceful, even with winter fast approaching.

A large wooden bench gave me a lovely view and seemed as good a spot as any to sit down and just think. I stared out at the grass as a soft breeze tugged at my coat and the thin branches in the trees. It was so calm, I could almost pretend there wasn’t an apocalypse going on.

When I accepted the mantle, I didn’t realize just how many people would come to view me as evil. As a monster…even Mr. Mitchells, who knew me before all this.

Damn it.

I huddled over and sighed into my hands.

It’s not going to change either. It’s just what it is. To the rest of the world, I’m nothing but a monster, and anyone who knows the truth is going to react the same way.

Getting angry or upset isn’t going to do anything. I sighed. My emotions have no place in this new world. Best get over them before they get me killed.

I leaned back and just stared at the sky as the sun finally set and plunged everything into darkness.

“Why so sullen?”

I jolted up at the voice, which came from right in front of me. I looked up to find a young girl a few inches away from me.

I didn’t hear her approach!

I automatically tried to stand, but the back of my knee hit the lip of the bench, and I stumbled.

“Who are you?”

I’d called her young, and she was, but she was older than I first gave her credit for. She was my age, around eighteen or so. Her skin was pale, almost ashen, like a corpse. She had a cute, teardrop face and fine lilac hair that stopped at her collarbone. It had to have been dyed, but I’d have said it was natural at first glance, but no hair could naturally get that color.

She was pretty, not drop-dead gorgeous like Adeline, but definitely girl next door material.

Her eyes were like polished silver dollars, with long eyelashes that curled at the tips. They were mesmerizing, and I had to force myself to look away.

She wore a short, flowing black dress with frills around the hem and a neckline that hinted at her modest cleavage. But she wore no jewelry, or shoes, for that matter. She stood before me as if it were any regular evening, and she was simply taking in the night air. No fear that she was in the middle of a city at night during the end times.

“Who am I? That’s a good question,” she said with a quiet laugh. Her voice was soft and danced through my ears, bringing a calmness to my turbulent thoughts. “But shouldn’t the asker introduce himself first?”

“Where are my manners?” I said. “Oh, that’s right, I think I left them back at my house, before the freaking apocalypse happened.”

She chuckled, her eyes lighting up with humor, and her pale lips lifted into a sweet smile. “So funny, Killian. Always quick with that wit of yours.”

“You know me?” I cocked my head to the side, furrowing my brow. “Have we met before?”

She nodded. “Though you wouldn’t remember.”

She walked, which was more like dancing with how incredibly graceful she was, next to me and sat down in a fluid motion. As she smoothed the edges of her dress, she turned to me, her eyes meeting mine.

“Though, that is not why I am here now, Demon Lord.”

My mouth went dry as I stared at her, dumbstruck. “You know who I am?”

“Of course,” she said and scooted closer to me, her arm nearly brushing my own. “While not beholden to one another, Callisto and I maintain cordial relations as best we can. We’ve spoken at length about you.”

She reached her hand over and walked her fingers up my arm. Even through my jacket and shirt, her hands were like ice, and the chill sunk into my flesh.

“You are not supposed to be alive right now. You were fated to be mine, and Callisto plucked you from my grasp, something that no god would ever attempt without my blessing.” She smirked. “At least the old gods knew their place.”

“Who are you?”

“And I looked and beheld a pale horse. And her name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with her.” She smiled softly. “Does that answer your question?”

My body stiffened, and my eyes bulged out of their sockets. “You’re─you’re─“

“Death,” she said sweetly. “My name is Death.”

I deflated in my seat and heaved a sigh. “Are you here to kill me?”

She shook her head and moved even closer to me, winding her arm through mine. “Not at all,” she said and pulled me closer to her, my elbow pushed into her soft chest. “I am here to mark you.”

Faster than I could react, she slipped her icy hand to the nape of my neck and pulled me down into a kiss.

It was sudden, but not entirely unpleasant.

Her lips were incredibly soft and welcoming, even if they tasted of formaldehyde. I recognized the unmistakable odor at once. It’s not something that can be mistaken for anything else, and I knew the smell, if not the taste.

My lips burned, but she kept hers firmly glued to mine for a long moment, as my head swam in a fog. It kept up until I eventually relaxed. It had been a long time since I’d been kissed, and even if the taste was vile, I let myself be swept under by her lips.

She broke the kiss sooner than I imagined she would have liked and stood, twirling under the nascent moon.

Death touched her lips for a moment with a dopey grin before locking eyes with me. “You are mine, Killian Dunn. Before any mortal. Before any god. You belong to me.”

I nodded before I could stop myself, and with my acceptance, a strange heaviness sunk into my head for a split second, as if I wanted to lie down and sleep for a thousand years. And then it passed, and I was left with a notification flashing through my eyes.

Touch of Death: Death has marked you, and you now bear her sigil. You may now enter the Land of the Dead.

(+10 to Wisdom and Perception)

“What is this?”

“Something I’ve waited fourteen long years to bestow upon you,” she said with a smile. “Think of it as a house key, so to speak. You’re welcome in my home whenever you feel like it, though I wouldn’t be too frivolous with this privilege. Time flows differently there than on Earth.”

Death looked at the moon and back at me. “I’m afraid I must depart. I have business to tend to, and I can’t stay.”

“Wait. So, you show up, kiss me, and then are just going to leave without explaining anything?” I asked.

She nodded, a wry smile budding on her lips. “Of course. Where’s the fun in just handing you the answers? But I promise I’ll explain everything in time.”

“So, I’m going to see you again?”

Death stood from the bench, looking down at me with a smile. “Count on it. I’ve been waiting too long to let you slip away from me again.

“If you have need of me, simply whisper my name, and I will come if I can.”

With one last parting smile, a breeze rolled through, and she was gone, leaving me alone in the dark.

What the hell was that about?

I sat back on the bench and stared at the spot where she’d been.

I’ve never met her before, I’m confident of that, but she seemed adamant she knew me. Odd. I think I would remember meeting Death.

Death. Actual Death.

Holy shit!

First gods, then an apocalypse turned into a video game, and now I was having a conversation with Death herself.

She kissed me. Like really kissed me. Death kissed me…

I didn’t know how to feel about that. I’d never been exceedingly popular, but I wasn’t a pariah. I’d had girlfriends before, several even. Though it had been a while since then.

Wonder what Rebecca is doing, if she’s even alive.

I hadn’t thought about her in over a year. I’d loved her. She’d been the first girl I’d ever been romantically involved with, but she’d moved to California the month before our junior year, and I hadn’t heard from her since.

Guess it doesn’t matter. Knowing wouldn’t help me one way or another.

I stayed staring at the whistling trees for another few minutes before circumstances forced me to move.

Need to get back now that I’ve calmed down. I need to see what Finn’s choice is.

I crept back to the café as quickly and quietly as I could. When I got back, there weren’t any lights on, and the windows were too dark to see through, so I opened the door carefully and stepped in. The room was empty and devoid of life. Neither Finn nor Adeline were here.

A scrawled note sat on the table next to the overturned coffee pot.

Killian, some men with guns are moving through the streets looting, so we’re bolting. There’s a nearby apartment complex that we’re going to check out. You can join us, or we can meet you here in the morning.

Stay safe, please. ─Adeline.

P.S. I’m sorry about the way I reacted. You were right to be upset with me. I hope I can make up for it in the future. ─Finn

At least they’re safe. I didn’t feel like trying to find which apartment building they slunk off to in the dark. Guess I’m staying here.

With nothing else to focus on, all the fatigue I’d been fighting crashed into me, and I yawned, grabbing my rifle before I scooted one of the couches as far from the window as I could and settled in for a rough night’s sleep.

Chapter 12- Fort Alexander

Even with the dark tinted windows, the sunlight was crisp when I woke up. My rifle was heavy on my chest. I shot up when I realized I wasn’t at home in bed before my groggy mind comprehended where I was.

Dear God, that was not the most comfortable night’s sleep I’ve ever had.

I got up with a groan and stretched. Several pops echoed through the café, and I let out a satisfied sigh of contentment as I rolled my neck back and forth.

Coffee. Need coffee.

I slogged my way to the kitchen and set a pot going.

As the coffee dripped, I went to the bathroom and took care of business. After relieving myself and washing up, I stared at my dirty face and clothes. I took a tentative sniff and recoiled.

I need a shower, or several showers, and a change of clothes.

All day spent hunting Charade Beasts in the Sewers had me covered in all sorts of grime and blood.

The clothes were a loss, but I tried to clean them and myself as best I could in the sink. Grabbing a washrag from the kitchen and some soap, I set about scrubbing away the worst of the bloodstains and muck.

They were soaked by the time I was done, and I really didn’t want to wear wet clothes when winter was coming. I didn’t know if the Mantle would handle hypothermia as well as it handled torn skin and broken bones.

When they were as clean as they were going to get, I took them to the kitchen, hung them on a drying rack, and set them in front of a pair of ovens and an industrial fan I found in the supply closet. I turned the ovens on four hundred degrees, left them open, and flicked the fan on high while I went back to the bathroom and took a very long sink bath.

After using nearly the entire bottle of soap on the ceramic sink, I was mostly clean and smelled like artificially scented watermelon.

I pulled a chair along with my pot of coffee into the now very warm kitchen and waited for my clothes to dry while I drank a metric ton of coffee.

So, was last night real, or was that a dream? I didn’t think it was a dream. It was too visceral, even though it was ridiculous. Did I really meet Death?

“Death?” I whispered.

A weight bared down on me, and suddenly, Death was in my lap. While I was sitting in the kitchen in just my boxers.

“Jesus,” I said, flinching as Death appeared.

“Nope. Just me,” she said with a yawn, her hand going to her mouth as she stretched out. “Oh, it’s warm in here. It’s nice.”

Death is in my lap, and I’m not wearing clothes.

She turned to me with a lazy smile. “Did you need something, or did you just want to see me?”

“More of the latter than the former. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t hallucinate the whole thing.”

“Oh.” She pouted slightly. “That’s fair, I guess. But you could’ve lied and said you just wanted to see my pretty face.”

“I just wanted to see your pretty face,” I deadpanned.

She laughed, and it was a lovely sound. Her silver eyes flashed with delight, and she wrapped an arm around my neck. She was actually a lot warmer today than the icicle she’d been last night, and her scent had changed. It was very floral, rather than the sharp, cloying smell of formaldehyde.

“So, what can Lady Death do for you this lovely morning?”

“Well, you could tell me what you meant last night when you said we’d met before.”

Death shook her head and leaned heavily on me. “Nope, not yet.”

I threw my hands up. “And why not?”

“Because I want to see if you not remembering changes anything. I want to see if we follow the same path.”

“You’re not making any sense.”

“That’s the point. Don’t worry about it. You’ll understand one day. But for now, consider me a friend.”

I chuckled and twitched in my seat. Death took the hint and sat up smoothly off my lap. “A friend who casually kisses me.”

She leaned over slightly and pressed her cheek to mine. Her warm breath tickled my ear. “Would it surprise you to learn that wasn’t the first kiss we’ve ever shared, darling?”

“Wait, what?”

She laughed and took a step back, her black dress swaying around her knees. “That’s all you’re going to get from me. Besides, you have company.”

I turned as the bell chimed slightly as the door opened, and when I turned back to Death, she’d vanished.

Not concerned that I was only in my boxers, I grabbed my Glock and kept it up as I went into the lobby. Finn and Adeline stood in the doorway, not moving as the barrel of my gun pointed their way.

“Jesus, Ade. We need a signal or something, so we don’t accidentally shoot each other.”

She held her hands up, a smile blooming. “How about, don’t fucking shoot your friends?”

“Poignant. I like it.”

Adeline wore different clothes than yesterday, but her hair was tousled by sleep. Finn still wore his uniform, but it was rumpled. His hair was in chaos.

“You two look like you slept well,“ I said with a chuckle.

Adeline groaned. “Yeah, the apartments were filthy, and I’m pretty sure the place we stayed in used to be a meth lab. It was uncomfortable, to say the least.”

I snorted and drained my cup. “I’m just glad you two didn’t kill each other. Good to see you can get along.”

Finn’s smile dropped as quickly as it came. “Yeah…about yesterday. I’m sorry for how I reacted. Adeline told me everything. Are you really going to save the world?”

I nodded, motioning to the coffee pot, which they both lit up at. I put a fresh pot on and went to grab my clothes. They were still a little damp, but I figured the rest of the water would evaporate before too long.

When I finished getting changed, the coffee maker dinged, and I poured everyone a cup. As we drank, I told Finn about the deal I’d made with Callisto, about the wish I would get if I won.

He listened to the story without interrupting. Even though he’d probably gotten everything from Adeline, I tried to make it abundantly clear that I wasn’t a bad person. I was just a man in a bad situation.

He sighed when I finished. “I believe you, Killian. I do. I just don’t know if I can join you. I have an obligation to the Army.”

“What Army? No disrespect meant, but there isn’t an Army left. No cops, EMTs, or firefighters. No government since communications are down. It’s just us, and unless Fort Alexander has a lot more troops than I think they do, they won’t be able to hold forever. Do you want to stay here and guard a dead city, or do you want to come with us and try to save the world?” I asked.

“I want to go with you, but it’s not a decision I can make myself. I’ll have to leave it up to my captain.”

I stood and downed the last of my coffee. “Well, then, that seems like priority one. Let’s get a move on. The fort’s a good few miles from here, and we’ll need to be careful. Who knows what we might run into. And speaking of, what happened with the looters last night?”

Adeline shrugged. “Don’t know much. We heard them coming up the street and hid, about fifteen of them. A few came in for a few seconds and decided there wasn’t much worth looting and left. Finn and I hid by the bathrooms and were half a second from opening fire on them,” she said as she snagged a plastic-wrapped pastry and devoured it.

“Well, let’s just watch each other’s backs on the way to the fort.”

With our immediate plan solidified, we scarfed down some food and headed out. It was still early morning, and the sky was a vibrant blue as we weaved through the alleys and streets. The sunshine kept the cold at bay, but it whispered at us with every breeze that drifted through the city.

There were more signs of looting and a heavy human presence in the area as we crept along the outskirts, but thankfully, we didn’t run afoul of any actual people.

Killing monsters, I’m okay with. But killing a human is a different story.

I knew I might have to, but it was something I didn’t want to think about too much.

This new world wouldn’t let me keep my kind heart, but I refused to lose my humanity altogether.

Adeline and Finn talked in hushed tones in between, keeping their eyes peeled for trouble as we walked. Both kept trying to bring me into their conversations, but I could only manage a few terse responses.

They’d been living in this world for longer than I had, and I still wasn’t used to it. I was focused on keeping anything from sneaking up on us, but I appreciated the gesture.

The rest of the route to the fort was free of any incident, though we all froze when a small pack of Carnival Beasts slithered over the rooftops of a building as we passed under it. We all trained our guns on them, but they passed without noticing us. After a minute of waiting, we pushed on.

Haven’t seen any Charade Beasts since the Sewers. We can’t have taken every single one in the city out, but maybe we just cleared out the ones closest to us.

I kept my rifle at the ready, not wanting to be proved wrong.

We started passing small patrols of soldiers on the streets leading to the fort. They were wary of us until Finn stepped up, and they let us through.

Fort Alexander was located on several acres of land and gated on all sides by heavy black steel latticed tightly together. Beyond the fence were several red brick buildings two and three stories tall, with long concrete walkways leading to the main building—a four-story gray building with the name of the fort bolted into the concrete.

To the left was an oversized parking lot with an array of olive and tan military vehicles. They ranged from blocky Jeeps to Humvees and quite a few I had no name for, all lined up in neat rows.

We strolled up to the main gate, and Finn took the lead, heading over to an intercom on a secure metal pole next to the entrance.

“PFC Finn Aquilla, Delta company, 38th Infantry,” he spoke into the receiver.

Without a reply, the gate shuddered and retracted to allow us passage.

Fort Alexander: Hardened Base

Fortification: 10

Threat Level: 5

Safe Zone: Active

“So, this is a Hardened Base? What does that mean?”

Finn shrugged. “I’m not entirely sure, since Captain Reynolds is the owner of the base, but it gives us access to a lot of different vendors, and as you can see, the safe zone means monsters can’t attack us. It’s a haven in the city. I just wish we would let in more refugees.”

“You’re not letting people in?”

He shook his head. “Not my call. The only people we allow in are soldiers and mercenaries. People who are willing to work. I don’t like it, but what can I do?”

I kept my mouth shut as we filed in behind Finn and walked on the freshly paved sidewalk until we entered the main building.

I’d never been inside before, and I was kind of let down by what waited for me when we stepped through the double doors. It was kind of like an office building or a reception area. The walls were eggshell white and spotless, the gray tile had been recently scrubbed, and a bored man in glasses sat behind a horseshoe-shaped desk typing away on an outdated computer screen.

He looked up when we approached and glared at us before turning to Finn. “PFC Aquilla, mind telling me who the civvies are?”

“Mercs. Saved my ass and then some. Crabs wiped my entire squad, including Sergeant Holt.”

He took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Dammit. Alright, go on back. Given the circumstances, I’m sure the captain will understand. But they’re your responsibility.”

“I’ll escort them,” a new voice said.

A man walked through the double doors.

He was a handsome, dark-skinned man with a tight fade and caramel eyes. He was dressed in the same combat uniform as Finn, but he had a different patch on his sleeve, signifying a sergeant, and a pretty high ranked one from the chevrons.

C’mon, Call of Duty. Where is all that information when I need it?

Thankfully, he introduced himself. “I’m First Sergeant Marquese Wise.” He glanced at Finn. “Did I hear right? Holt’s dead?”

“Yes, First Sergeant. I’m sorry.”

Marquese shook his head, sighing. “Dammit. He was a good man.” He looked up and clapped Finn on the shoulder. “They all were.”

“Thanks,” Finn said.

“This damn world of ours just keeps taking, it seems.” Marquese looked over to us and snapped out of his melancholy. He held his hand out to us. “My apologies. I’ll escort you to Captain Reynolds for debriefing. If you’ll follow me.”

Without another word, the man turned on his heels and started walking.

We proceeded down a long hallway.

The walls are too white, too clean. I’d go crazy if I had to live in this monument to cleanliness. It made everything feel off, like it was fake, and it set my teeth on edge. I don’t like this place.

We passed a few open doors with soldiers milling about, but most were situated at workstations typing furiously on computers.

Does the military have access to communications, or are they just typing? You don’t need the internet to use a computer after all.

“What’s with this place?”

Wise chuckled ahead of me. “Not what you were expecting, right? This base is mostly used for logistics and inventory. Nothing terribly exciting, though on the upside, it meant we were extremely well stocked with supplies when all this happened, and can use some of them to pay out bounties on high-value targets. And of course, with the coins, it’s made mercenary work very lucrative, if you can survive.”

It sounds shady as hell, but I guess legality went out the window a few weeks ago, and I’m benefitting from it, so I can’t exactly complain.

There was an elevator at the far end of the hallway, and the four of us piled in and descended for twenty seconds. When we departed, we entered an underground complex.

It wasn’t terribly large, a rough square about three hundred feet in each direction, with sections that went a little deeper. After spending most of the day yesterday in the Sewers, more concrete and steel above my head didn’t make me feel any better.

Wise led us to a middle-aged man sitting behind a desk, in a crisp uniform with two silver bars on his collar. His bright green eyes peered at us from behind a pair of wire-rimmed glasses, and he stood as we approached.

“Captain.” Wise snapped off a salute, and when it was returned, he relaxed. “PFC Aquilla is the only survivor of Holt’s squad.”

The captain shook his head as he turned to Finn. “Were they all killed…or?”

“Yes, sir,” Finn said sharply. “I’m afraid they were. Would’ve joined ‘em if not for Killian and Adeline here. They even helped me clear the crabs from the Sewers.”

He sighed, his face haggard, haunted. “Grave news. Holt was one of our best.” He quickly composed himself and turned to Wise. “Get with Staff Sergeant Moore and double up our patrols. I want to make sure we don’t lose any more men.”

Wise grimaced at the name, but kept his mouth shut. “Yes, Captain.”

He turned and left us standing there with Finn, unsure of what to do.

I’d never dealt with members of the military in normal circumstances, and these certainly weren’t normal circumstances.

The captain turned to us, and his eyes brightened slightly, placing his hands on his desk. “I must thank you for your assistance. I’m Captain Desmond Reynolds.”

“We were just happy to help,” I said.

“For a fee, of course,” Adeline interrupted.

Reynolds snorted. “Mercenaries, huh? You keep getting younger each week,” he said with a laugh. “Not surprised, though. Hell, the way things are going, there’ll be more mercs than soldiers in the base before long.”

Finn froze for a second. He looked down at his shoes and back at the captain. “About that, sir. I owe these two my life. I’d have died more than once without them, and I can’t let that debt go unpaid.”

Reynolds frowned, his eyes squinted. He took off his glasses and tossed them to the table behind him. “You want out?”

“If you’ll allow it,” Finn replied.

He looked from me to Finn. “Procedure doesn’t matter anymore, and I can’t really stop you. If it’s what you want, I’ll add your file to the others. It’ll be processed if or when the world puts itself to rights again, but with each day, that seems less and less likely.”

“Have you had many soldiers ask to leave?” I asked, scratching at the nascent stubble sprouting on my cheeks.

He nodded. “About half the men under my command. We tried to keep things going when this all started, but when Major Becker was killed, I couldn’t hold order. They’d have mutinied if I tried to force them to stay.” Reynolds's lips turned into a grim smile. “At least you’re asking nicely.”

“Thank you, sir.”

He held up his hands. “Though, if you’re going merc, I have several jobs available that you three are more than welcome to look at. Callisto knows we could use the help.”

Finn turned to us, a pleading look in his eyes. “We can help, right?”

We did need more experience under us, especially after my conversation with the Charade King.

If we’re going to have any shot at New York, it won’t be as we are now. We need to level up.

I nodded to him and the captain. “Of course we can. Show us what you have.”

Reynolds nodded as he stood and led us to a private office in the back of the complex. There weren’t any windows, but the space was well decorated with expensive wood furniture and a lavish desk. The chair alone looked like it had cost nearly a grand. Two smaller chairs sat in front of the desk, and as Reynolds walked behind it and sat down, Adeline helped herself to one of them.

“So, I know what you can do for me, but I would really like to know what I can do for you. I’d be more than happy to pay you in food, ammo, guns, even throw in some coins for your trouble. You can use the vendors around the base to your heart's content, but we have better value if you want food or ammo.

“We even have a few modest apartments on base, hot meals and showers too. We’re on our own separate power grid, so we can keep going when the power eventually shuts down in the city. You help us, and I’m more than willing to help you.”

He motioned me to take a seat with a wave and a smile.

“I’m fine standing, and while we need all of those things, what we really need is transportation. We’ll be leaving the city relatively soon, and I would prefer to take a vehicle that can withstand bullets or claws.”

Reynolds’s smile fell, but he quickly composed himself. “Ah, so you’re probably wanting an M1114,” he said and immediately saw my look of confusion. He smiled, showing his teeth. “It’s a Humvee, you might find it a bit cramped inside, but it seats four and has enough armor to stop small arms fire and perhaps a few of the smaller beasts that roam out there.”

“Sounds perfect,” I replied.

“Yes.” He tapped the sheets of paper on his desk and hummed under his breath. “Unfortunately, at a quarter-million each, they’re rather expensive and hard to come by these days. I do have one I could spare, but the cost is four thousand coins, and that’s me being very generous.”

I opened my mouth, and Reynolds immediately held up his hand.

“I’m betting you don’t have enough coins to cover it right now, but we have plenty of jobs available. If you take them, I’m sure you’ll have the coins in no time. If a vehicle strong enough to brave the roads is what you seek, then I’ll move Heaven and Earth to get it for you, but you’ll have to do some work for me first.”

There really wasn’t much I could say in argument, but I looked to Finn and Adeline. “What do you guys think?”

Finn nodded. “Captain Reynolds is a man of his word, but he won’t give it to us for nothing.”

“Seems like a fair deal to me,” Adeline said. “We need to earn our keep at least if we’re going to be staying here in the short term.”

“Alright,” I said and held out my hand. “Then I think we have a deal, Captain.”

He took my hand without a second’s hesitation. “Good to hear it. For your reward for clearing out the nest of Charade Beasts, I have a few single-room apartments on the east side of the base. 103 and 104 are yours. Normally they cost two hundred and fifty coins to stay in, but considering what you’ve already done for us, I’ll let you have the keys. Along with as much food as you can eat and free use of the showers.”

“Thank you.”

“Of course,” he said, dropping my hand. “PFC A─I mean, Mr. Aquilla, would you please show them around, help them get a feel for the base?”

“Yes, Captain.”

“Also, change out of your BDU’s and into civvies as soon as you can and drop your uniform off with Quartermaster Franklin.”

Finn paused in the doorway for a moment before he nodded. “Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.”

The three of us headed out of the office and back to the elevator. Finn led us to the main building, and after stopping by his barracks to change out of his uniform and into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, he asked us where we wanted to go first.

Adeline and I looked at each other and back to Finn and, at almost the same time, said, “Showers.”

He let out a loud laugh and took us up a flight of stairs and down a long hallway to the bathrooms.

Just like the rest of the base, everything was spotless. There were several small dopp kits in a wall of cubby holes next to the showers. I opened one to find soap and shampoo, along with a small bottle of shaving cream and a disposable razor.

I took the bag in with me to the small, single-occupant stall, closed the thin vinyl curtain, and took a very long, very hot shower.

I was in the middle of washing my hair for the second time when a soft voice whispered next to my ear.

“Oh, my.”

Not caring about the soap slipping down my sopping wet hair, I opened my eyes to find Death in the shower, nearly pressed against me.

“Ack!” I screeched and nearly toppled over in the attempt to cover myself. “What are you doing?”

She smiled at me and ran her hand through my soapy hair. “I just dropped in to see you. I should have peeked first. Instead, I got a peek,” she said with a wicked laugh.

I blushed scarlet and tried to find the right words, but I just ended up stuttering, which did nothing but made her laugh.

“You’re adorable when you’re flustered. You know that?”

“Get out,” I hissed.

Death pouted, leaning against me, her black dress quickly getting soaked. “What, don’t you want to shower together?”

“There’s not a good answer to that question.”

She laughed again. “Relax, I was joking. But next time, I’ll make sure not to bother you when you’re showering.

“Oh, before I leave. Sleep alone tonight. I’d like to talk to you if you’re willing.”

I nodded, and she smiled before vanishing, leaving me in the shower with a red face, sud-drenched hair, and a very conflicted mind.

What the hell am I getting myself into?

After Death left, I tried to relax again and enjoy the shower, but my thoughts kept drifting back to her. I finished washing and left, drying myself with a thick and fluffy white towel.

Waiting for me next to my discarded clothes were a fresh set of black canvas pants and a matching black button-up along with a white undershirt and new boots in my size. A long thick overcoat was also folded up next to the clothes. It was charcoal rather than black and looked warm. It stopped just before my knees, but I liked it.

Reynolds didn’t say anything about new clothes, but I appreciate it, nonetheless. Though he’s certainly going to a lot of trouble to keep us around, does he need help that badly?

I thought back to the state of Grissom City and couldn’t help but think that they did indeed need all the help they could get.

I got dressed and met Finn outside, still in the same clothes. His brown hair was damp, so he’d showered too, just quicker than I had. “I was right. You look good wearing that, Killian. Like a badass.”

I scoffed. “Shut up.”

“No, seriously. I’m glad they fit. You and Rickey looked about the same size, so I grabbed them for you.”

“Rickey?” I asked, looking down at my new clothes.

“Yeah, he was my bunkmate. We were friends…he was in my squad when, you know.”

“I’m sorry,” I said.

Finn nodded, looking away. “Me too. Rickey didn’t have any family, so his clothes would just go to waste otherwise. I thought it’d be best if someone else got some use out of them.”

“I appreciate it. I really do.” I held up my fist.

He smiled and bumped it. “Hey, not to be weird or anything, but do you talk to yourself often?”

I stared blankly at him. “Why do you ask?”

“Oh, it just sounded like you were talking to yourself a bit in the shower.” He quickly held up his hands. “No judgment. I talk to myself too.” Finn paused. “Shit. What I’m getting at is if you need someone to talk to, I’m your guy.”

I nodded but didn’t say anything. What could I say? That I had talked with Death herself?

I can see that conversation going over swimmingly. No, guys, really, I’m the Demon Lord, and I talk to the Incarnation of Death. That’s one bit of crazy too many. I’d lock my ass up in the whacko basket, too, if I spouted that off.

Finn clapped me on the shoulder and smiled wide at me. “Adeline said she’d be awhile, so let’s get some grub while we wait!”

“Best thing I’ve heard all day.”

Finn took me to the mess hall, and we both piled our plates high with mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, and a spicy meatloaf that was moist and rich. We dug in and ate our fill and made polite conversation. Finn told me about his time in the military while I spoke about high school life, but we didn’t get into anything deeper than that.

Despite us fighting together and coming to trust each other, there was still an awkwardness between us that I hoped would go away as we became better friends.

So we ate and made small talk until Adeline walked in. Her hair was still wet from the shower, but she’d changed into a plain blue T-shirt and gray denim jeans that hugged her curves.

Even I had to admit she looked good, and she turned every head in the hall, receiving a fair share of wolf whistles and catcalls. Her bright green eyes smoldered as a smirk tugged at the corners of her lips.

She sauntered over to us and sat down with a smug grin. She tried to pretend everything was normal, and I just chuckled under my breath and turned back to my meal.

”What was that?” Adeline asked, nudging me with her elbow.

”Ow, Jesus, Ade. Watch it with those knives you call elbows, could skewer me with those puppies.”

She laughed before grabbing me around the neck and digging into my side even harder. ”The mighty Demon Lord,” she whispered before getting louder. ”Felled by my elbows of steel.”

My struggling only made her pull me tighter, and I found my face pressed against her chest. I could tell instantly that she wasn’t wearing a bra.

My face got hot.

“Um, Ade…”

Finn was trying hard not to burst out laughing. ”Speaking of puppies, Adeline. You’re smothering our leader,” he said before devolving into raucous laughter.

Ade noticed where my face was, and instead of getting embarrassed like I thought she would, her smile twisted deviously. She took my head in her hands and turned, shoving my face right in between her breasts as she tried to suffocate me.

“Why, Killian. I never knew you were so bold. If you wanted to motorboat me, all you had to do was ask.”

Utter rage boiled in my chest, and I trembled, trying to fight to keep from screaming. Adeline released me a second later when she started shaking so hard with laughter that she couldn’t breathe.

Her and Finn laughed so hard tears streamed down their faces, and their cackling echoed throughout the mess hall.

I took one look at them, and my anger flooded away in an instant.

It was the first time I’d seen either of them laugh so freely, and with everything we’d been through in the last few days, I let them have their fun for a moment.

But don’t think I won’t get you two back, though. I smiled as I turned back to my meatloaf. I bet Death likes pranks.

Chapter 13- Mercenaries Wanted

When they finally got a hold of themselves, Adeline pulled me into her again, but for a hug this time. “Sorry, Kill. I couldn’t resist.”

“Yeah, yeah. Next time keep your airbags to yourself.”

She grinned. “First time anyone’s said that to me in the history of ever,” she replied with a laugh before gliding out of her seat to get some food.

“Kill, got a question for you,” Finn said when Adeline was out of earshot, jabbing his fork at me, a hunk of meatloaf dangling precariously on the end. “You and Ade. You guys a thing?”

I sighed.

Guess I can’t escape that nickname after all.

“Not even kind of. I don’t know what we are. I’d like to say she’s a friend, but I don’t know if that’s true. We went to school together, knew of each other, but we didn’t really speak. I’ve only really known her for a few days.”

He took a bite and chewed. “So, you wouldn’t mind if I went after her?”

I rubbed at the base of my neck and squinted. “You like her?”

“Have you seen her? Who couldn’t? She’s gorgeous and tough as nails. She has more steel than some of the men here. What’s not to like about her? But I wanted to check and make sure you two weren’t together.”

“Nope,” I replied with a chuckle. “Have at her. She’s not my type.”

“What, perfect?” he asked.

“Jaded.”

He paused, fork halfway in his mouth. He looked over at Adeline as she gathered her food and back at me. “Whatdya mean?”

I shrugged. “I don’t mean anything negative by that, but from what I’ve seen, Adeline’s had it rough. I think that’s made it hard for her to trust people. And that means that she only really cares about herself. Adeline will put Adeline before anyone else.”

“But didn’t she join you to save her friends? That’s what she told me. Doesn’t seem like a selfish action to me.”

“Yeah, but she also got a class change out of it. So, she had something to benefit from agreeing. She wouldn’t be here otherwise.”

Finn paused over my words as he swallowed his mashed potatoes. “I don’t know, man. I think you might be judging her a bit too harshly. I don’t think she’s as cold as you make her out to be. You saw how she laughed a few minutes ago. I think she just needs to know that she can depend on people. Trust is the rarest thing to find in this new world of ours.”

Yeah. Maybe he’s right.

We both stared at each other without saying anything. Finn went to open his mouth but looked to his left and quickly shut it as Adeline came back with her tray piled high with food.

“What are you two talking about?” she asked, snagging a green bean from her plate and tossing it into her mouth.

“Guy stuff,” we both said at the same time and burst out laughing.

“Weirdos,” Adeline said, and started on her meal.

As she ate, the two of us composed ourselves, and when we were done laughing, Adeline leaned over and lowered her voice.

“Alright, so you have some explaining to do, Kill.” Adeline cast her eyes over to me. “I know we had a half-assed plan, but you seem to be a few steps past that at this point. Where’d asking for a Humvee come into play?”

Oh, dammit. I completely forgot to tell them. In all that’d happened since we’d fought the Charade Beast, I hadn’t told them of my conversation with it. There’s actually a lot we need to go over.

I looked around the mess hall at the many soldiers coming and going. I shook my head. “Not here. Let’s talk when we have a bit more privacy.”

“Well, what’re we waiting for?” Finn asked.

I thumbed over at Adeline, who was currently stuffing her face. A green bean stuck to the side of her mouth. She just stared when we glanced over.

“What? I’m hungry.”

“We can see that…”

She gave us both the finger and continued eating, but at a faster pace while we waited on her. When she was finished, we all got up, threw our trays away, and headed for our rooms.

There were separate buildings and houses for military personnel who lived on base and small one-unit apartments. I didn’t know who they were for, but I doubted they were meant for the long term. Most likely, they were used as lodging for high-ranked military personnel or those of similar status when they came to visit the base.

We got better rooms because Reynolds was trying to butter us up into convincing us to stay on.

As long as I get a nice bed to myself, I don’t mind the reason.

My room was on the first floor and the second to last door in the hallway. As we reached our rooms, I touched the door.

[Permanent Home] Room 103

Cost: 250 Coins

Use Apartment Key

Y/N

Yes.

The door unlocked and opened by itself. I walked in. It was pitch black inside, so I turned on the light and shut the door. The room was modest but clean with a full-sized bed, a cheap black desk and chair in the corner, and a TV mounted on the wall.

It had the same fake feel of a hotel room, but it was nice enough. A small kitchenette was by the door, an island with a couple of stools separated the bedroom from the dining area. It had a sink, microwave, and fridge. There was also one of the coffee makers that took the pods, which were beside it in a rack. No shower, but a half bath was just beyond the kitchenette. It was quaint, cozy.

I dropped my bag and rifle next to the swivel chair and waited for the others to join me after they checked out their room.

Guess Finn and Ade are going to have to shack up together. Because I’m not sharing. I grinned. Though I doubt Finn minds.

I shrugged off my coat and tossed it on the desk and went to make a cup of coffee.

I need a nap, but I’d rather have coffee. I’m sorry, eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. I’m having an affair with caffeine. It’s not you. It’s me.

I laughed to myself as the coffee maker dinged.

“Man, I need friends,” I said as I poured a cup and took a sip.

It was cheap, but coffee was coffee, and I practically inhaled the cup as Adeline and Finn entered without knocking.

“Coffee.” Adeline moaned.

I picked up a plastic pod off the rack and tossed it at her. “Make some your damn self if you want any.”

She caught it without looking and smiled. “Don’t mind if I do.”

“Okay, so what’s so secretive that we couldn’t talk in the mess? I know those guys. They’re good people.”

“And I’m the Demon Lord, not exactly something I want to go around advertising.”

“Okay.” Finn held up his hand. “Point, but still, let’s hear it. What’s the game plan?”

“There’s one order of business we have to take care of first.”

I need my pieces, Callisto.

For a second, nothing happened. Then a soft breeze filled the room. I turned as the briefcase appeared on the cheap desk. Finn followed my eyes and did a double-take.

“Where’d that come from?”

“Which one are you giving him?” Adeline asked, sipping on her cup of coffee.

I opened the case, and the glistening black chess pieces stared back at me. I didn’t know what the pieces did, but Finn was a soldier, so I thought the Knight would be perfect for him. I picked it up and held it between my thumb and index finger.

“First thing you need to decide is if you want to be a part of my team.” He opened his mouth to speak, but I held my hand up. “I know we got past our differences, but this isn’t something you can accept lightly. You know what my endgame is. I can put the world back when all this is over, but we’re probably going to have to do a lot of bad things before it’s all said and done.

“I’m not ready for this responsibility, so no way can either of you be. But I need you on my team, Finn. I need both of you.”

“Give me the damn thing already, Kill.” He held his hand out. “I decided the moment I chose to come back this morning. You guys aren’t getting rid of me that easy.”

I smiled and tossed him the vicious piece.

He caught it, and when he opened his hand, it was gone.

“Well shit, there goes half my levels.”

I cursed. “My bad. Forgot to warn you.”

“Hey, it’s cool. I’m just glad not to be a Soldier anymore.”

“What class did you get?”

“It’s called Revenant. My level is now six, and I have a few skills to choose from.”

I wanted to ask what they were so I could help him choose, but it was his choice to make. It was his class. After a moment, he stopped staring off into space and cleared his throat.

“I picked Abyssal Armor and Void Shield. Both are made to stop attacks. It seems my class is designed to take damage.”

I nearly shouted. “Yes! We have our tank.”

“That’s a gaming thing, right?”

I nodded. “Yep, you are going to be our frontman, soaking up damage so Adeline and I can dish out the pain.”

Finn shrugged. “Works for me. It’s a hell of a lot better than Phantom Grenade at any rate. What about you, Ade? What are your stats?”

“Class is Demoness. Level is five. My skills are Hellbent, and the one I picked up after we completed the sewer quest is Conflagration. Both are fire spells. One is a single target, and the other seems to spread out over a few feet.”

“An AOE attack. Interesting.” I scratched my chin, which reminded me I really needed a shave.

So, with a tank and a spellcaster, that leaves me as the in-between. In my Demon Form, I’ve got good combat ability, and as soon as I get some spells, I can pretty much cover any role needed.

My thoughts further solidified what I’d been considering for a while now. With my stats more or less evenly distributed, my role was quickly becoming a jack of all trades. I wouldn’t be specialized, but I’d be more versatile than anyone else in my party.

“Okay. I’ve got a decent grasp of what you both can do. We’ll need to test your abilities and figure out how to fight as a team, but that can wait until later.

“Let me tell you what I learned from the Charade King.”

I filled them both in on what he had told me about New York and my plan to head in that direction, leveling up along the way.

Finn was against the idea, but he had more info than we did, considering he was in the Army. He told us both a few horror stories about the monsters that annihilated the state. His words chilled my blood, but we really didn’t have another option.

“I get that it's dangerous, but we can’t play it safe, not when I’m a month behind everyone else. We’re on a clock. The Archangel has already had plenty of time to grow strong, and the more days that pass, the stronger they get. Waiting around or playing it safe just isn’t an option.”

“Not to be a dick, but why don’t we just let the Archangel and the White clean up the world for us. They’re the good guys, right?”

“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “On paper, you’d think so, but look at me, at us. None of us are evil. Hell, I’m the furthest thing from a Demon Lord, yet here I am.” I stood to go make another cup of coffee, scooting by Adeline just as she grabbed one of the pods.

“Don’t mind if I do,” I said, parroting her words with a smile, already picking another one up for her even as she opened her mouth to complain.

“Steal my coffee again, Kill, and those beans won’t be the only thing that get roasted,” she said with a fierce grin.

I laughed as I waited my turn for coffee. As we all sat down, I sighed as I got back to the conversation at hand. “I don’t know who the Archangel is, what their beliefs are, or goals. But I damn sure know mine. If the fate of the world, of my family, is in my hands, I’m not going to pass that responsibility onto someone who might not have the same goal in mind.

“I’d rather just do it myself.”

Adeline held her mug up. “Well said, to Team Killian!” she shouted with laughter in her eyes.

“Team Killian!” Finn echoed.

I threw my hands up. “Okay. Both of you. Out. Go and do the no-pants dance or whatever social, well-adjusted people do and let me get some sleep.”

Finn roared with laughter while Adeline blushed red and grabbed the pillow off my bed and chucked it at me.

”I’ll smother you in your sleep, Killian!”

“How about you go smother Finn with your thighs instead?” I said, giving her a saccharine sweet smile.

Finn had to drag Adeline out as she hurled obscenities at me, but he slid me a wink before he shut the door.

As soon as they left, I hit the light switch, bathing the room in muted darkness. The only light came from the fading glow of the sun through the open blinds. I flopped down on the mattress and folded my arms under the pillow. It was soft and clean, and a whiff of lavender clung to the fabric. It instantly soothed my heavy mind, and I wanted nothing more than to sleep like the dead.

“Good evening, Killian.”

“Ugh.” I groaned.

I forgot that she said she’d stop by.

Dammit. I’m tired.

Death laughed, and her weight settled next to me. “Is the prospect of conversing with me so unpleasant?”

“No, it’s just been a long few days, and this is the first chance I’ve actually had to get some proper rest.”

“Well,” she said, stretching out the word as her warm breath broke on my neck and crawled over my skin. “I think I can let you sleep, just this once. Do you mind if I stay here beside you?”

“Knock yourself out,” I mumbled, already following my own advice.

I slept hard, and when I finally woke back up, it had to have been many hours later. I went to reach for my phone only to realize I’d tossed it.

“Damn, need to get a watch,” I muttered as I rolled over.

“It’s just after five in the morning. The sun will be rising shortly.”

Death smiled at me from the pillow next to me. “Good morning.”

“Morning. Five? I must’ve slept for, what, nine hours?”

“Ten, but who’s counting?”

I shifted on the bed, sitting up on my elbows and turning to her, stifling a yawn. “Sorry about that.”

She smiled wider. “Don’t be. I don’t sleep that often, but just resting beside you was…nice. It was something I’m not used to.”

“I’m sure you could find a skeleton or two to cuddle up with.”

She laughed. It was throaty and rich. “I’ll have you know I’ve never once slept next to a skeleton, thank you very much. Too bony.”

I snorted, which devolved into full-blown laughter.

“You should laugh more often. It’s lovely.”

“So, what did you want to see me about?”

Death sat up and crossed her legs. The folds of her black dress bunched up to her thighs and gave me a good view of her pale skin. “What makes you think it was anything more than me wishing to spend time with you?”

“Because you’re the literal Incarnation of Death, and I’m just me. A nobody.”

“That may have been true once, though I would have never called you such. But you’re very important now. The fate of the Earth rests in either your hands or the Archangel’s. That’s quite the responsibility.”

“Still doesn’t explain what you want with me. Up until a few days ago, I wasn’t the Demon Lord, yet you act like you know me.”

She came closer to me, close enough that our noses almost touched, and her sweet breath drifted past my nose. “Because I do know you. I’ve known you for many years now.”

I tilted my head as I squinted at her. “And what, I just forgot about it?”

“Of course not. I took your memories.”

“What?” I bolted upright. “Why?”

Death shrugged. “Because I technically wasn’t supposed to interact with you at all on the mortal plane. So, I kept my visits to your dreams. I visited you often there.”

Several half-remembered dreams came to mind as she spoke, flashes of nothing but disjointed and blended dreams and nightmares, but one thing I remembered clearly was a flash of purple hair and a kind smile.

Nothing more than that, but I never remembered my dreams beyond little snippets. However, her words rang with truth. Even if I couldn’t remember myself, I knew she wasn’t lying.

“Can I have them back?”

She shook her head. “Nope.” She smirked, mischievous. “Like I said yesterday. It would ruin things. I want to get to know you without them influencing you.”

I scratched at my mess of shaggy hair and groaned.

I need coffee if I’m going to deal with this.

With another groan and a slew of pops, I shuffled out of bed and went into the kitchenette. I made two cups of coffee and set them down on the island that separated the kitchen from the rest of the room. Death climbed out of bed, fixed her dress, and came to sit next to me.

As I offered her one, she took it with a grateful smile. “Thank you. It smells good.” She took a cursory sip and recoiled in disgust. Her face scrunched as she stuck her tongue out, which was adorable. “It’s bitter.”

“It’s delicious,” I said, trying not to laugh at her face and chugged the steaming liquid.

When I’d drunk enough to suitably handle the conversation, I turned to her. “So, I’m guessing by what you said that we were pretty close?”

“Maybe.”

I grumbled and finished my coffee. I held my hand for her mug, and she slid it to me with a chuckle.

“Be my guest.”

“Well, we were close enough that you felt comfortable kissing me. And you said it wasn’t the first.”

She shook her head. “It wasn’t. We often kissed, though not as often as either of us would have wanted.”

“That answers my question. So, very close, then?”

Death frowned. Her expression soured into almost a pout. “Hey, no. Stop that. You’re not supposed to know that.”

“It’s not my fault you slipped up,” I said with a laugh.

I could tell she wanted to be mad that she’d messed up, but my laughter brought a smile to her lips, and soon she was laughing next to me. “Okay, that one was my fault. But no more tricks. I really would like to get to know you again. A fresh start.”

“So, you won’t be giving my memories back?”

“I will eventually, but not right now.”

With one last gulp, I finished her cup of coffee and sighed. “Then what do we do now?”

“I’d like for us to get to know each other again. But considering what I already know about you, how about you ask me whatever you want? And I’ll answer.”

“Asking whatever I want of the Angel of Death.” I snorted. “This might take a while.”

And it did. Though, to my surprise, much of her life was pretty dull. She collected and harvested souls and brought them to the Land of the Dead all by herself for more years than I could fathom.

“Really? Being Death kind of sounds like a pain.”

“It is sometimes, but more than that, it’s boring. So incredibly boring. Especially right now.”

“I figured you’d be busier than ever, this being an apocalypse and all.”

She shrugged and tapped her pale fingers on the countertop. “You’d think, but I can’t do my job right now. Not while Callisto is playing his little game.”

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing. Forget I said anything.”

“Well, that doesn’t make me curious in the slightest.” I paused to take a sip of coffee. “What about before all this started?”

“It was busier, but not by much. Any job can be streamlined after you’ve been doing it for a few millennia, even death itself.”

“So, you did it by yourself?”

“For the most part, a few of the old gods of death thought it was their duty to ferry souls, but they just got in my way most of the time.”

“The old gods?” I asked. “Who were they?”

“Beings like Callisto. Shardbearers who wielded enough fragments of creation to become gods. They were worshiped by humanity for millennia. Until the Culling.”

I’d forgotten I had coffee in my hands and dropped the cup. Splashes of coffee splattered across the counter.

“Shit.” I hastily wiped it up before returning my attention to Death. “The Culling?”

Death held her hand up. “Sorry, Kill. I can’t tell you about it. It’s forbidden. I really shouldn’t have said that much.

“I can tell you what happened after, though. I was able to get a bunch of new helpers,” she said, grinning.

“So, the old gods are your reapers now?” I asked.

Death laughed and leaned closer to me. “That’s a rather funny way to put it, but accurate. Once I had them working for me, I had a lot more free time on my hands, so I watched over humanity, sneaking glimpses into your lives at random. It was fun and kept me entertained for a few hundred years.”

“So, what do you do now?” I asked.

“Whatever I want,” she said with a smirk. “Perks of being an immortal.”

We talked for another few minutes about her life and things like that, but we never got close to the questions I really wanted answered, but I couldn’t deny that some part of me enjoyed talking to her, just having her nearby.

And I didn’t like that feeling.

Trust is a hard thing to come by these days, and you’re too much like Callisto. I don’t trust either of you.

She’s playing a game with me. And that alone tells me not to ever trust her. But I want to, and I don’t understand why.

It was just after six in the morning, and I was too in my head.

Death noticed, and sighed. “I know I’ve left you with far more questions than answers, but I promise that all will be revealed in time.” With that, she smiled and stood. “I have to go now, but I’ll try to visit you tonight. If you’re willing.”

She vanished, and I sighed.

I was too wound up to even think about sleep, so I settled on going for a run. I’d seen what looked like a makeshift gravel track in the distance as we’d walked outside yesterday, so I thought it would be an excellent place to get some exercise.

I slipped on my clothes, made another cup of coffee, and drank it on my way outside.

It was brisk out, the sun hadn’t yet banished the night's frost from the air, and my breath came in great clouds as I finished my steaming coffee and stretched, warming up for my run. The gravel crunched under my shoes as I set a modest pace and worked the sleep from my joints.

The track was probably two miles from start to finish, and by the time I’d lapped it twice, my heart pounded nice and fast. I stopped running and did three sets of pushups and sit-ups. Sweat poured off me by the time I was done.

That’s a good enough workout for now. But let’s be honest, I’ll probably get a better one today with whatever quest Reynolds has for us.

After I finished, I dried my face with my shirt and went to get clean. Several soldiers were up and about. I skirted around a few of them going about their day and headed to the showers.

What I hadn’t realized before is they were co-ed showers. I found quite a few naked men and women in the room with me as I grabbed a bag of toiletries and waited for an availability. I kept my eyes glued to the floor and didn’t realize Finn and Adeline had walked in until they sat down next to me on the bench.

“Morning,” Finn said and offered me his fist.

I bumped it as Adeline sat down next to me and yawned. “Morning, Kill.”

“You sleep well?”

“More or less,” he said with a chuckle.

“No details, please.”

They both laughed and grabbed their shower supplies while we waited for the queue to clear. Two showers opened simultaneously, so I took one, and Adeline took the one next to me.

I stripped out of my clothes and tried not to blush when Adeline whistled. “Need to get you some sun, Kill,” she said laughing.

Finn chuckled and smiled. ”Vampires aren’t in fashion right now.”

”Neither is skin cancer. Can’t cure that so easily now. And not all of us were born with a perfect skin tone, Finn.”

They both laughed.

I took a quick shower finally shaving off all the stubble. When I was done, Finn hopped in as soon as I got out. He was faster than I was by a wide margin, and he managed to get in and out before Adeline even finished.

As soon as we were all dressed, we headed down to the bunker to meet Captain Reynolds.

“Wonder what the quest is going to be?” Adeline asked as the elevator doors opened and we walked out, our footsteps lost in the drone of dozens of fingers typing away at computers.

Reynolds sat at his workstation with First Sergeant Wise next to him, going over reports. They glanced up when we approached.

“Morning. You three looking for work?” he asked while turning his eyes back to his screen.

I nodded. “What do you have for us?”

Reynolds shrugged and pulled a few sheets of paper from his desk and laid them out in front of us. Adeline and Finn peered over my shoulders at the paper.

“I’ve got several monster nests that need to be dealt with.” He pointed at each one. “Office buildings, brewery, schoolhouse, warehouse. Hell, even have a couple in Fairwind Estates if you want to go mansion hunting. Take your pick.”

The three of us looked them over, and I tried to keep the scowl off my face. They were all low-level quests, paying only a few hundred experience points and a handful of coins. We would have to do at least a dozen to get the money we needed. And each one would take at least half a day or more to complete since they were spread around the city.

So damn slow. Are these really our only options? It’s not like we don’t have the time, but we need to plan rather than just going about these at random.

I turned to the others. “What do you think?”

Adeline leaned over and picked up a few of the papers, tapping her chin. “Hmm.”

“What do you see?” I asked.

She picked up three of the pages and pushed the others aside, bunching them up on one side of Reynolds’s desk. Adeline rearranged them and set them down one at a time.

“Look here.” She pointed at the first. “At where they’re located. They almost make a loop around the city, leading straight back here. We can hit these three in order. It’d cut down on travel time, and we could probably hit them all in a couple of days. Save’s time and energy.”

As I glanced over the requests, I knew she was right. We could take them and earn a decent amount of experience and coin in the process.

I nodded and snatched up the quests. “Alright. We’ll take them.”

As soon as I spoke, several notifications appeared in front of me.

Extermination Quest: Stacking Boxes, Stacking Bodies!

Deal with the nest of Beasts located in Windigo Industries Fulfillment Center

Difficulty: Easy

Reward: 346 Exp

150 AC

Extermination Quest: We Didn’t Mean Literally Eat the Rich!

Deal with the nest of Beasts located in Fairwind Estates

Difficulty: Medium

Reward: 458 Exp

200 AC

Extermination Quest: School’s Out Forever!

Deal with the nest of Beasts in Grissom Elementary School

Difficulty: Easy

Reward: 312 Exp

100 AC

I accepted all of them and looked at the others. “Guess we’ve got our work cut out for us.”

“Looks like it,” Finn said. “I’m game.”

“We should head out as quick as we can. These quests are going to take some time, but if we’re fast, we might make it to Fairwind Estates before nightfall.”

Finn grinned. “I’ve never slept in a mansion before.”

Wise looked us over. “You should probably stop by the vendor next to the armory and pick up some ammo or some better weapons if you can afford them.”

“Not a bad idea,” Reynolds said.

I nodded. “Alright. Best get moving, then.”

Reynolds wished us luck and then turned back to his computer as we left.

Finn led us deeper into the concrete bunker, past steel-reinforced doors and many rooms lined with heavy metal racks and shelves, the contents all neatly labeled and in boxes. The three of us had to enter a room that was under guard. Two soldiers decked out in full gear, shotguns in hand, told us to halt when we approached.

“Captain Reynolds approved us. We’re just grabbing some ammo,” Finn said.

“Wait while we verify.”

One of the men pulled out a small handheld computer and began typing on it. In less than a minute, it chimed, and he nodded. “You’re cleared.”

“Thanks.”

As Finn led us to an anteroom to the side, I asked about the computers.

“Unfortunately, they don’t work for shit off base. Above ground, they’re really weak and spotty, and the range shrinks to a few miles. It’s not worth taking them with us.”

The room was small, only housing two things, a large steel door and a rectangular silver console about the size of a vending machine. It looked just like the vendor at the school but far larger.

I tapped the screen, and instead of lighting up, it popped up in front of my vision.

“Neat.”

Finn nodded. “It’s so more than one person can use it at once.”

I tuned him out and focused on the screen.

Supplies Vendor: Level 2

Available Shops

Ammo

Medical

Weapons

Armor

Alright, let’s go shopping.

I selected ammo first, and a vast list appeared. Every caliber of bullet humanity had ever manufactured jumped out at me. I didn’t bother looking through them. I just focused on more ammo for my M4.

5.56×45mm NATO x100: 10 Coins

I went ahead and bought two hundred more rounds.

Would you like to purchase the appropriate magazines to store your ammo for a small additional fee of 10 Coins?

I snorted.

Always an upcharge.

But I did need them, and it would save me the time of loading them myself. I hit yes, and the vendor whirred to life, depositing my first purchases from a concealed slot near the bottom. I pocketed the ammo and then went looking through the other shops.

From Medical, I bought a high-quality grade first aid kit that had a trauma kit that could stabilize near-fatal wounds, and it had ten charges.

It was fifty coins, but I thought the expense was well worth it.

I flipped through the guns and armor, but everything immediately jumped to several hundred coins, and I blanched at that. There was a lot that I wanted to buy, just from the names alone, but I had to save for the Humvee, and I couldn’t afford to spend my coins so frivolously.

Adeline and Finn were already geared up and ready to go by the time I was done looking. We set out, heading back up the elevator and out of the building.

The front gate opened without a word, and we now found ourselves out from under the protection of the base’s safe zone and on our own once again.

“We’ve got quite the itinerary today,” Finn said.

I chuckled. “Yeah. Busy day. Sights to see. Monsters to kill. Who wouldn’t be excited?”

After that, we set off into the city once more.

Chapter 14- Digressing and Side Questing

“Watch the corners!” Finn shouted.

Half a dozen Carnival Beasts converged on us from every angle of the warehouse. They hopped on towering pallets of plastic-wrapped brown packages that would never be delivered in their attempt to devour us whole.

One of them leapt at me. Its long ivory fangs angled for my throat.

I reached up and gripped it by the neck, its broad, angular face an inch from mine. The kaleidoscope of colors in its eyes threatened to tempt me over the edge into madness, but I quickly crushed its neck, my demonic claws spearing through its flesh and slowly ending its life.

As its eyes darkened, I tossed the carcass aside like it weighed ten pounds and drew my Glock on the remaining group that pressed toward Adeline.

“A little help here!” she shouted, firing her shotgun into the masses as she backed up. “Unless you want me to burn the fucking building down around us.”

“I got you,” Finn said.

A pulse of shadow roiled as he stepped forward, wearing what looked like medieval-style armor, but it was twisted and blackened with darkness. Shadows writhed and swirled off the metal as if swept up in a storm and curled off his armor as he strode toward them.

I couldn’t see his face behind the helmet of concentrated abyss covering it, but a gleaming ethereal light lit up purple in the shape of a demented smiley face, grinning from ear to ear.

“You like, Kill? Abyssal Armor kicks ass!” he said, his voice a grizzly bastardization.

Finn lowered his shoulder and charged into the fray, Carnival Beasts all around him. His suppressed rifle barked as he fired indiscriminately for a few seconds before he clicked empty. He grunted and shifted his grip, holding it like a baseball bat as he hit a home run on a Carnival Beast, nearly taking the monster's head off with a single well-placed swing. Bone cracked, and its head twisted at an unnatural angle before it crumpled to the floor.

Holy shit! That’s some strength he’s got!

I laughed. “Impressive!”

Finn smirked. The shadows covering his head lit up and mimicked his expression as he turned to me. “Talent, baby. I’m basically God’s gift to kicking ass.”

Cardboard crunched from my left, and I turned on instinct, already raising my pistol at the Carnival Beast that slunk around the maze of pallets beside me. I pressed the trigger as fast as I could, firing a quick three-round burst. It dropped, splashing its viscous blood over the concrete floor and pallets.

With it dead, I turned back to Finn and Adeline, who’d taken out the last of the monsters that had ganged up on them.

As the smoke from our guns faded and the last shell casing rattled against the floor, silence reigned in the warehouse as the sickly-sweet stench of death clung to the back of my throat.

I looked around, trying to find any of the creatures that we missed, but as the seconds ticked by, it was clear that we’d gotten them all.

A fact that was confirmed by the notification that appeared in front of me.

Combat Results!

7 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 434 Exp!

Experience Boost (12.5%): 54 Exp!

Total Gain: 488 Exp!

AC Earned: 70!

Level Up!

Quest: Stacking Boxes, Stacking Bodies Completed!

Deal with the nest of Beasts located in Windigo Industries Fulfillment Center

Difficulty: Easy

Reward: 346 Exp!

Experience Boost (12.5%): 43 Exp!

Total Gain: 389 Exp!

AC Earned: 150!

Not bad. Especially with my Charisma and Well-Rested buffs earning me so much extra experience points.

“Guess that answers that, I said and canceled Demon Form and pulled up my status.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 285/400 (440)

Mana: 350/500

Level: 8

Exp: 826/930

15 Stat Points Available!

Time to allocate my points!

With the boost I’d gotten from Death’s sigil, I didn’t need to worry about putting any points into Wisdom or Perception, which freed up some points to bring up some other areas.

Charisma is a must. With how beneficial it is, I’d be a fool not to put at least five points into it every level.

The experience boost would only grow and help me level up even faster.

That left me with ten to distribute.

In the end, I added five more to Strength and Agility. My health was good where it was…as long as I avoided getting hit, which was hopefully where the Agility came in.

When I was done, my stats were looking pretty decent.

Stat Page

Strength: 30

Constitution: 20

Perception: 20

Endurance: 0

Agility: 25

Wisdom: 30

Charisma: 20

I waved away the screens and turned to the others. “I got seven. How many did you kill?”

Finn smirked. “I bagged nine, Hermano!”

Adeline scowled, folding her arms. “Six.” She grumbled. “I’d have beaten the both of you.” She threw her hands up. “But, no. Adeline, you’ll burn the building down. We’ll suffocate,” she said in a whiny voice. “Bunch of babies.”

Finn and I looked at each other and then back at Adeline, who cracked a smile. Then the two of us lost it, laughing our asses off, surrounded by the dead, still leaking bodies of a bunch of monsters.

When we stopped laughing and stood, I wiped my brow and glanced at one of the high windows tacked to the rusted sheet metal building. The sun was still high overhead, just passing midday.

“Alright. One down.” I turned to Finn and Adeline. “You guys up to tackle Fairwind Estates?”

Adeline nodded, fire brimming in her eyes. “Hell yes!” She smirked. “You know that’s where Greg lived, right?”

I grinned. “Okay. Adeline, restrictions off. Go nuts with your fire.”

She laughed. “With pleasure.”

“Who’s Greg?” Finn asked, which caused us to keep up our laughter as we left the warehouse.

Wind tore at our clothes as we stepped onto the street. Dead leaves and debris caught and rolled down the road as we headed north toward the residential area. Abandoned cars, purses, and briefcases littered the asphalt as we walked, along with garbage of every variety.

“How quickly the city can go to hell when no one’s working on upkeep,” Finn said.

I chuckled. “The heavy monster presence probably doesn’t help.”

“Right.” He snorted. “Least they could do is pick up after themselves after they slaughter people.”

Adeline pointed at a dark splotch on the ground. “I’m actually kind of glad that Callisto’s pets are so thorough when they feed.” She shrugged. “At least we don’t have to walk past a bunch of rotting corpses.

“I’ll second that,” Finn said, pulling out a canteen. “To the small things. May they make the road to hell a little smoother.”

“I’ll drink to that.” I snagged a water bottle from my bag and drained it. I dropped it on the ground, and it rolled for a second before being picked up by the breeze. “Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair.”

Adeline snorted. “At least one of us was paying attention in Mrs. Hofstetter’s class.”

“Had to. She didn’t give us an option,” I said with a sigh. “Seems like a lifetime ago now.”

Adeline and I shared a look, and she nodded, giving me a small half-smile. “Yeah, but we survived, in the apocalypse of all things, and not only that,” she said, gesturing around us, “we’re almost thriving. Almost.”

“We’re certainly doing better than probably most of the world right now.” I grinned and nudged Adeline. “That’s because you’re too stubborn to die. I thumbed over to Finn. “And Finn, as God’s gift to kicking ass, can’t be allowed to die.”

He grinned, his face reddening. “I thought it sounded cool in the middle of the fight.”

I clapped him on the back. “Oh, it was something all right.”

The three of us laughed as we kept walking through the city, and it was good. It was something we desperately needed.

It took the edge off the blade that hung over our heads constantly these days. The end of the world was unfolding around us, and things wouldn’t get better, not for a long damn time.

Might as well take the good moments when we can.

As we passed through downtown, we took a turn and headed north. Signs of battle were everywhere. Shell casings and dried blood littered the street, but there weren’t any bodies of humans or Callisto’s pets.

“You think the beasts are cannibals?”

Finn shrugged. “Maybe. But it all depends on if they are eating their own kind. Maybe they are a different species, which wouldn’t make it cannibalism.”

Adeline laughed. “All right! These are the questions we really should be asking.”

“Yeah. Guess in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter.” I shrugged. “But it makes you wonder.”

“I wonder when we’ll get to the mansions so I can take a shower,” she said. “Greg’s dad installed steam showers.” She glanced at me. “Steam showers, Killian. My God, you haven’t lived till you’ve tried them.”

“Running up a sky-high water bill isn’t exactly how I thought I’d get my revenge, but, hey. I’ll take it.”

“So, was this Greg your ex?” Finn asked.

“Definitely not,” Adeline said. “He was…a means to an end when I thought my life couldn’t get any worse.”

“Ah.” Finn scratched his head and glanced back at me, his eyebrow raised.

I just shook my head, and he turned back around and kept walking.

We lapsed into silence after that.

Our past lives still clung to us, but each day they seemed less and less relevant. Who we used to be didn’t matter anymore. All that mattered was who we had become to survive.

A Carnival Beast poked its head around the lip of a building in front of us. It glanced at us and hissed, opening its mouth wide.

It got half of a scream out before a bullet burst through its jaws and blew its skull apart like a geyser. It was swiftly silenced as the muffled retort of Adeline’s pistol faded.

“We should hurry. Others will be here soon,” she said.

“Right.”

The three of us put some extra speed into our steps and double-timed it to Fairwind Estates.

By the time we reached the intricate wrought-iron and brick fence that led to the gated-off community for Grissom’s wealthiest residents, I was breathing hard, and a dull ache had settled in my shoulder from carrying my messenger bag for so long.

But the slight ache and pains were nothing new, and I ignored them as we approached the tall gate.

I glanced at the blocky silver keypad and turned to Adeline. “Any chance you know the code?”

She grinned. “Sure do!”

Adeline strolled up to the iron gate and reached out a hand. It burst into crimson flames, and she gripped the lock tight in her hand. It grew red hot and smoked before it melted in on itself, and molten slag dripped to the pave stones.

In a handful of seconds, the entire housing mechanism for the lock was in a white-hot puddle on the floor, and Adeline turned back to us.

Her smile was sickly sweet as her eyes danced with dark mischief. “The code was fire.” She reached her hand back and pushed the gate open. It swung silently on oiled hinges as Adeline’s smile deepened. “Told you I knew it.”

I snorted. “I’d have never guessed it.” I looked down and recoiled at the waves of heat rising from the concrete. “Just watch your step.”

Finn gulped and gave the pile of molten goo a wide berth. “I’d like to keep my extremities, thank you very much.”

As we got inside, I whistled.

Tall, two- and three-story brick mansions dominated both sides of the street. Immaculate million-dollar homes were so resplendent that even the apocalypse couldn’t overshadow their beauty.

Verdant green lawns and slightly overgrown hedges spanned for a mile as supercars littered the driveways.

“Anyone want to go house hunting?” Finn asked.

I grinned and raised my M4. “Isn’t that what we’re here for?”

He laughed. “Touché.”

Adeline racked a fresh round into her shotgun. “But for this place to be a supposed nesting ground, I’m not seeing much evidence of that.”

I looked around and had to admit that he was right. It didn’t seem like this place had even been touched. A few discarded pieces of trash had escaped the green plastic trash cans that lined the streets, but otherwise. It was calm, quaint, and quiet.

And it set my teeth on edge.

“There’s supposed to be a nest around here, yeah?” I asked. “That’s what the quest said, at least.” I turned to Finn and Adeline. “Can quests be wrong?”

Finn shook his head. “I don’t think so. Captain Reynolds sent out several patrols this way to scavenge supplies, but they didn’t return. So, there’s something here.”

I sighed and glanced up and down the street. “Great. We’re walking in blind to a situation that has already killed trained soldiers.” I chuckled. “Yeah, our lives are so messed up right now.”

With nothing else to do, we pushed forward, weapons raised, and ears tuned to any new sound. It made progress slow going, but I’d rather be slow than dead.

But as we walked past mansion after mansion with no sign of trouble, my paranoia spiked.

I pointed at the house on our right. “That’s the fifth house we’ve passed that has no sign of damage. No broken windows or shattered doors. If there are any of Callisto’s pets around, how did they get into the houses?”

“Sewers, maybe?” Finn said, pointing at a nearby drainage ditch.

The drain was only a few inches tall and maybe two feet wide.

“They’d have to be really tiny…though having something small and fast coming at us doesn’t exactly make me feel any better.”

“Think we should go in and check one of the manors?” Adeline asked.

We shared another look and smiled. “Greg’s?” I asked.

“Read my mind.” She flashed me a ferocious smile and pointed down the street toward one of the most extravagant mansions we’d come across yet.

It was a large, expansive three-story with white stone walls, marbled columns, and a bay window over the arched entryway that was at least as large as my entire bedroom. The charcoal shingles were trimmed in gold, and three separate chimneys poked from the rooftop.

I whistled. “Damn. I didn’t know his dad was that rich.”

“You should see the inside. There is a small theatre and a room with a sunk-in jacuzzi. It’ll change your life. Trust me,” Adeline said.

“Can it change it back before this nightmare started?” Finn asked.

She laughed. “It’s not that magical.”

“Then my interest has dropped drastically.”

I nudged him and motioned to the door. “Let’s get on with this. We passed a lot of houses to get here. I want to find out what we’re dealing with sooner rather than later.”

He glanced back. “How do you want to play it?”

“Quiet if we can.”

Adeline leaned over to the gold inlaid crown molding around the entryway and ran her hand along it for a second before there was a soft click, and a small panel swung open, revealing a single brass key.

“You must have visited often,” I said as she took the key.

She shrugged, kneeling as she unlocked the door and raised her shotgun. “What can I say? Greg had the good shit.”

Finn and I raised our weapons as the door swung open.

We rushed into a grand, open hallway. The two of us swept the sides while Adeline came in between us and covered the long stairwell at the end of the hall.

On my side was a sitting room that looked to belong in the eighteen hundreds with leather furniture and solid oak tables situated around a marble fireplace.

But as I scanned the room, I found nothing.

“Clear,” I whispered.

“Same here,” Finn said.

“I got nothing,” Adeline said.

What the hell? Is the quest broken or what?

I took a single step into the parlor, and as the echo of my footfalls spread throughout the room, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

A whisper of breath came from my right, and I turned on instinct.

Something large and black exploded from the fireplace. Soot and ash billowed in its wake as it barreled into me.

I hit the ground hard as all the air rushed from my lungs, and I gasped, choking on nothing as my head slammed back into the hardwood floor, and my vision swam.

My gun fell from my grasp and skidded across the floor as I tried to recover.

Whatever had hit me was long, angular, and heavy with muscle. I looked up into the face of a monster. It was thick with matted, glossy black fur and powerful limbs that pinned me in place with ease. It looked like a panther, but it was almost twice the size, and its head was much too long, like a snake. Its eyes burned a brilliant orange, and as it opened its mouth, a long, barbed tongue spilled out along with its rotten breath.

Inspect!

Monster (Mid-Tier): Midnight Beast

Health: 600/600

Mana: 300/300

Exp: 343

AC: 193

What the hell?

Its tongue landed on my cheek, and a barb caught on my skin. It instantly burned before a swift numbing sensation spread throughout my head.

I opened my mouth to shout, but no words came. My jaw hung limp, and I couldn’t close it properly.

Not good!

I settled for whatever sound I could make and groaned as loud as I could as I fought for my pistol.

The Midnight Beast’s claws dug into my skin, ripping deep grooves into my chest.

Ailment: Major Bleeding

-25 HP per Minute

I groaned even as I scrambled for my weapon. As my hands closed around the grip, footsteps pounded from my right.

“Hey!” Finn shouted.

The Midnight Beast turned at his approach, and Adeline came up behind him, her shotgun tight against her shoulder.

As they lined up their shots, it let out a sibilant howl, and its skin rippled, bristling with a thick aura that was so dark purple that it was nearly black. It shimmered down its spine and tail and covered it in a split second.

Before Finn and Adeline could pull their triggers, it melted into wisps of shadow and vanished, disappearing around me into the floorboards like it was sucked into a vacuum.

As it fled, the numbness around my mouth receded, and I stood, snagging my gun.

“You okay, Kill?” Adeline asked.

I shook off the aches and slight ringing in my ears and glanced down at myself. The gashes in my chest weren’t as deep as I thought, and my bloodstained shirt acted as a poor man’s bandage, sticking to the wounds and lessening blood flow.

Even the major bleeding debuff had lowered to minor bleeding. I grabbed some gauze and tape anyway and quickly applied the bandages, using most of the remaining supplies in my cheap first aid kit.

“Yeah. I am now.”

“What was that thing?” Finn asked, checking behind us.

“A Midnight Beast.” I looked at him and then at Adeline. “I’m guessing you haven’t seen these before either?”

They shook their heads.

“Well, it can teleport. That’s a new one,” Adeline said.

“And its tongue has some kind of paralytic effect, probably on the teeth as well.”

Finn sighed. “Oh, goody. At least it’s gone for now.”

I nodded, sweeping the room once more. “For now. Though that doesn’t make me feel better. It’s fast and quiet. And if it can teleport, then it can ambush us from anywhere.”

Finn pursed his lips, drawing them into a tight frown as his brow furrowed. He cursed. “Yeah, no. That’s worse.”

Adeline turned and opened her mouth, but just as she was about to speak, a shrill howl split the air. It reverberated through the floor and threatened to burst my eardrums before it slowly tapered off.

It came from outside, and the three of us raced back to the entrance of the mansion.

The Midnight Beast stood in the center of the street, staring directly at us. In the bright sunlight, its glossy coat shimmered with every color of the rainbow like an oil slick, but beneath it was like staring into the abyss.

Its shadow stretched far too long behind it, and it writhed as if alive.

I raised my rifle, lining up my sight. All while the beast stood impassively, as if daring me to take the shot.

Before I could squeeze the trigger, movement from the left and right of me drew my attention.

A new Midnight Beast appeared from each of the mansions down the road. They all turned to look at the one in the center of the street, and as one, they all disappeared into clouds of smoke.

The shadow around the first one grew in length, spreading out in front of it, and soon it covered every inch of the concrete.

Four long shadows split from within the darkness, forming back into the Midnight Beasts, and all five of them slowly advanced.

“Holy shit,” Adeline said.

“Fuck this,” I said and fired.

The rifle bucked against me, the suppressed rounds sparking as they struck the street in front of the lead Midnight Beast. Chips of concrete arced into the air, and the recoil of my first burst rocked my gun up enough that the second burst slammed into the Midnight Beast.

Round after round peppered the beast, yet each time they struck, puffs of darkness rolled off it, and the bullets passed harmlessly through them, pinging off the asphalt behind it.

“Oh, that’s just not fair.”

I stopped firing and glanced at its stats.

Mana: 125/300

It was burning through its mana to keep up the ghost impersonation, but I’d eat through my ammo just wearing it down.

“Adeline, light them up!” I shouted.

“Got it!”

Her hands sparked with crimson flames as she shouldered her shotgun and tossed fireballs at the encroaching creatures.

One landed just shy of a Midnight Beast, but when it hit the concrete, it burst apart and scattered over the monster. Hellbent stuck to the beast and held firm. Its shadow magic couldn’t withstand the intensity of the fire, and the beast let out a tortured scream as it was engulfed in a raging inferno.

The beast slowed as its skin blackened and cracked. It took a single step, and as its paw landed, it dissolved into ash.

It gave one last whimpered howl before it burst apart and crumpled into cinders.

“Holy shit, Adeline,” Finn said.

“Told you I’d have beaten the both of you.” She reared back and tossed another fireball.

But the Midnight Beasts were clever hunters, and as soon as the first one died, the others dispersed, morphing back into the shadows, leaving the street clear once more.

I cursed and glanced around. “Dammit, they can hit us from anywhere if we let them. We need to find somewhere defensible.” I looked back at the house. It wasn’t much better, but it was small enough that I didn’t think more than one or two could come at us at any given time. “Back inside!”

Finn and Adeline didn’t argue, and the three of us backed up while keeping our eyes peeled for any disturbances.

As we got inside, Adeline turned to me. “What’s your plan? Because you just eliminated the single biggest advantage we had against them. My flames worked on them.”

I nodded. “Yeah, but they’re clever ambush hunters. Do you really think they’ll just stand there and let you fling fire at them again?”

She paused. “Good point.” She looked around. “What about light, then? It seems that they use the shadows to hunt. What if we take them away?”

That’s not a bad idea.

“Okay, you know the house. Where can we get the best light?”

She motioned to the back hall, past the stairwell. “The theater.”

“Alright! Let’s go.”

Adeline took off with Finn and me right on her heels.

But before we got more than halfway down the hall, my instincts shouted at me just as a brush of wind drifted over my skin.

I turned as a shadow on the wall shifted and warped right as Finn passed by.

“Finn. On your left!” I shouted.

He whirled around, raising his hand as he did so.

As the shadow coalesced into a Midnight Beast, it leapt straight for him, fangs bared.

Finn smirked, and a swirling mist rose from his hand. It spun, growing darker with each rotation, until it formed a spiral abyss that devoured even light.

The beast was already in midair and couldn’t change its direction. It collided with Finn’s Void Shield and was eaten entirely.

The sickening crack of bone and squelch of flesh being pulverized filled the silent hall, and a single spurt of yellow blood arced from within the shield before it, too, was sucked back inside and consumed.

In a single split second, the Midnight Beast was nothing but scraps of meat and bone, and then it was nothing at all.

Finn canceled his shield and grinned, laughing. “Wasn’t expecting that, were you, bitch?”

“I certainly wasn’t,” Adeline said.

“Badass, Finn. Now, if you could just do that with the remaining four, that’d be great.”

He chuckled. “I’ll take it under advisement.”

With that, we headed for the theater, which was in the back of the mansion, in a side room that had to have once been a pool house but had been converted. It was about thirty feet in a rough square, with three rows of seats and a large projector screen covering the back wall.

Adeline felt along the wall and found the light switch.

Instantly, the entire theater lit up with bright light, banishing most of the lingering shadows.

It was so sudden that I had to blink my eyes clear as tears rolled down my cheeks. “Ah. Damn bright LED bulbs,” I muttered.

“That is rather excessive,” Finn said. “But all things considered, I won’t complain.”

“Yeah, guess you’re right.”

A low growl echoed through the movie theater, and we sprang into action, our guns trained on the sound.

“Anyone pinpoint that?” I asked.

Adeline shook her head and whispered. “Couldn’t tell. It’s a damn echo chamber in here.”

Another growl, this time much softer and from a completely different direction than the first.

“Now they’re just screwing with us,” I said, then raised my voice. “Didn’t you ever learn not to play with your food? It’s rude.”

A high-pitched howl was my response, and something shifted behind me.

As I turned, a shadow formed behind the projector screen before a massive set of claws ripped through it and charged me.

Jagged fangs and an unnaturally large, barbed tongue dominated my world as time slowed to a standstill, and I activated my Demon Form.

Time reasserted itself as I brought my hand up and sank my claws into the Midnight Beast’s neck. Its howl of rage was cut off as shadows crawled over my skin, slowly blackening my flesh with necrosis.

Ailment (Curse): Blight

Area of infection (Arm)

Acid burned my fingers, slowly eating away my hand, but I still held on. Even as the beast tried to escape into the abyss, my claws held it in place. It let out a half-strangled rasp as I sunk my fingers deeper into its flesh, clawing my way towards its spine.

Its tongue draped over my shoulder, hooking into my jacket as blood trailed out of its angular mouth as it snapped at me.

With a grimace and a whisper of effort, my claws closed around something hard, and I yanked with all my increased strength. I ripped part of its spine, and it went limp as half of its neck split open.

I dropped the bloody scrap of bone in my hand, drew my pistol, and placed it against its head. I pulled the trigger, and its brains exploded, mixing with the dying shadows as its body slumped over, lifeless, in my hands.

Ailment: Blight Removed!

“Two more,” I said, dropping the carcass onto one of the theater seats.

“Seems like you can grab them,” Finn said.

“Yeah, but it’s got some kind of curse magic,” I said, holding up my hand. Thankfully, the blackened flesh was slowly healing. “I’d rather not come that close to losing a body part again.”

Finn blanched. “Ugh. Good point.”

“Well, I don’t think you’re getting much choice,” Adeline said, spinning as she dropped her shotgun and drew her pistol.

One of the beasts raced from the shadows to her right, keeping low to the ground as it ran through the seating.

Adeline fired a quick burst and then cursed as her brass clacked against the plastic armrests. White stuffing littered the air from the cushions as she missed.

“Stand still!”

Another beast thundered past from behind me. I turned and fired, knowing I wasn’t going to hit anything.

Finn and Adeline backed up, and the three of us formed a triangle in the center of the theater.

“Shit. I don’t think they’re playing around anymore,” Finn said.

“They’re trying to goad us into wasting our ammo. And they know they can’t get close or stand still anymore,” Adeline replied.

“I hate it when they learn from their mistakes,” I said. “Clever monsters really piss me off.”

Just as I spoke, glass shattered overhead, and the room was plunged into darkness once again. As the fragile shards littered the seats and carpet around us and my eyes tried to adjust to the sudden pitch-black room, I cursed again.

“Clever monsters, really, really, piss me off.”

Footsteps padded behind me, and I turned as a vague panther outline emerged. I gripped my rifle tight as I whipped the stock toward the sound.

One of the Midnight Beasts bolted towards me, and with inspect active, I could tell that its mana was almost gone.

Their constant teleporting had run down their mana.

As it closed the distance, I smacked it in the face with my gun. It connected with a dull thud, and the beast's head snapped to the side as a tiny tick of damage registered.

But just as quickly, it shook off the strike and snarled. It opened its mouth and jerked its head to the side. Its tongue snapped forward like a whip and wrapped around my wrist, sinking its barbs into my flesh.

The toxin, or whatever it was, flooded into my bloodstream, and my vision swam, but I gritted my teeth and grabbed hold of its tongue.

I pulled it taut, keeping the Midnight Beast from going anywhere.

“Gotcha.”

Smoke and shadow rose from the monster as it attempted to escape, but I surged forward just as the last of its mana flickered out. The shadows surrounding it died down as I dropped my gun and raised my claws to its head.

They sank in with little resistance, carving through its flesh and bone with ease. I closed my fist around its brain and pulverized what remained of its skull.

Blood rushed over my fingers as the monster collapsed to the ground, breathing its last.

As soon as it was dead, I knelt, grabbing my gun off the floor, and turned back to Finn and Adeline.

“One left,” I said.

“Oh goody. I call dibs,” Finn replied.

“Not if I get to it first, you don’t,” Adeline said.

A single brief rush of air was the only warning we had. We all looked up as the last Midnight Beast fell from the ceiling, dropping straight down on us.

There was only a split second to react, and I was slow as I raised my gun.

Finn barreled into my sightline, his entire body covered by Abyssal Armor. Before the beast could land, Finn leapt into the air and met the monster head-on.

He grabbed hold of it as its claws sliced into the metal of his armor, bringing shadows with it. They poured from Finn, and he bit back a curse as he crushed the beast into him.

It fought like hell to break free, its claws ripping grooves across his chest and legs.

“Adeline! Hit me!” he shouted.

Her eyes went wide. “Are you crazy?”

His shadows lit up in a wide smile. “Maybe. Just do it! I’ll be fine.”

Shit.

Before I could do anything, Adeline’s hand lit up crimson, and she reared back to toss her fireball. “You’d better not die, you damn fool!”

The blazing red inferno lit up the darkened movie theater and collided with Finn and the Midnight Beast. It burst apart like a geyser, and both went up in a torrent of flames.

The beast screamed, its shrill howl ringing loud enough in my ears to cause them to bleed. I fought down the wave of agony that accompanied it as Finn grunted, still holding onto the beast even as they both burned.

One last howl escaped from the beast before it let out a hoarse croak as its body dissolved into ash.

As it crumbled to pieces on the floor, Finn backed away, dropping to a knee as his body was covered with crimson fire. His chestplate, which was already cracked and torn, broke under the intense heat, releasing a cloud of shadows around him.

Finn screamed for a second until the flames died down. They faded in a handful of seconds until they went out completely.

Most of Finn’s armor was blackened and cracked, and as the last of the flames flickered out, so, too, did his armor. It shattered and turned to smoke, which billowed around the room.

Finn knelt there, his body covered in ash and a few burns and scratches up his arm, but beyond that, he wasn’t severely wounded that I could tell.

Sweat dripped down his face, mixing with the ash to run black down his body. He took in several great gulps of air before he looked up and gave a halfhearted laugh.

“Yeah. That sucked about as well as you could guess.” He raised his hand. “I vote we never do that again.” Then he fell back, laughing. “Barbeque Finn, come and get it while it’s hot!”

Adeline chuckled. “That was one hell of a quest.”

“You’re telling me,” I said as the notifications popped up.

Combat Results!

2 Killed (Midnight Beasts): 343 Exp!

Experience Boost (15%): 51 Exp!

Total Gain: 394 Exp!

AC Earned: 386!

Level Up!

Quest: We Didn’t Mean Literally Eat the Rich Completed!

Deal with the nest of Beasts located in Fairwind Estates

Difficulty: Medium

Reward: 458 Exp!

Experience Boost (15%): 69 Exp!

Total Gain: 527 Exp!

AC Earned: 200!

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 243/400 (440)

Mana: 350/500

Level: 9

Exp: 817/1013

15 Stat Points Available!

I quickly added the fifteen stat points to Strength, Constitution, and Charisma. Five each. I definitely needed more of all three if this quest was any indication.

“And this was just the second quest,” I said, sighing. “We still have one more left.”

Finn groaned, covering his eye with his arm. “Yeah.” He blew out a breath. “Oh, great. Just when I thought my day couldn’t get any better.”

Chapter 15- The Grind

“Ah. Sweet relief!” Adeline said as the sight of the apartments came into view.

“You said it,” Finn replied.

I looked down at myself, covered in monster blood, and sighed. “Maybe we should have stopped back by Fairwind Estates before we came back to base.”

Adeline laughed, wiped a yellow strand from her collar, and smeared it on her already stained jeans. “Told you the steam showers were something else.”

“And the jacuzzi was life-changing. You were right,” Finn said. “I’m going to miss it.” He pressed his hands together as if in prayer. “Douchebag Greg. Thanks for the hot tub, bro. Even if you were a dick to my friends.”

Adeline and I burst out laughing.

I clutched my side. “I’m sure it’s just the exhaustion from the last two days talking, but that was funny.” I stood, wiped my eyes, and sighed. “I think I’m going to sleep like the dead for at least twenty-four hours.”

“I think I’ll fall asleep as soon as I hit the pillow,” Adeline said.

We paused at our doors and grinned at each other.

“Hell of a time, though,” Adeline said. “Night, Killian.”

I looked up into the bright morning sun and chuckled. “Night, guys.”

As I entered, I checked things over. No one had been in since I’d left that I could tell, and I set my gear down and undressed, climbing into bed.

I relaxed and stared at the ceiling for a while. My thoughts were chaotic, heavy from our trip into the city, and I was drained, both physically and mentally.

Before I passed out, I pulled up my status.

Combat Results!

8 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 496 Exp!

Experience Boost (17.5%): 87 Exp!

Total Gain: 583 Exp!

AC Earned: 80!

Level Up!

Quest: School’s Out Forever Completed!

Deal with the nest of Beasts in Grissom Elementary School

Difficulty: Easy

Reward: 312 Exp!

Experience Boost (17.5%): 55 Exp!

Total Gain: 367 Exp!

AC Earned: 100!

I whistled.

Damn. I’ll take it. Though it was a hellish two days, I can’t deny those three quests sure helped level me up a good bit.

With the twelve and a half percent boost to experience, even tackling easy quests and killing easy monsters like the Carnival Beasts was still rewarding.

Now to turn to my stats.

I pulled up my Mantle.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 450/450 (495)

Mana: 500/500

Level: 10

Exp: 754/1104

15 Stat Points Available!

New Skills Available!

Skill Point: 1

But before I could deal with my new level, a voice spoke up.

“Seems you have a lot on your plate, my Demon Lord,” Callisto said, scaring the hell out of me.

I bolted up in bed as my adrenaline spiked. “What are you doing here, Cal?”

Callisto paused for a moment, the suns in his eyes lighting up in humor as he hovered just off the ground. “Cal?”

“Yeah, well. Callisto is a mouthful.”

He laughed, a soft tinkling sound that rolled around and lingered in my head. “In all my centuries, no mortal has been bold enough to give me a nickname.” He stopped and pressed his finger to his lip. “Cal, I kind of like it.

“And to answer your question, I’m here to talk. It’s been a while since we’ve talked, and I must say, you’re making decent progress, but you could do to go faster. You’re still behind.”

“I’m going as fast as I can.” I sighed. “We just spent the last two days neck-deep in monsters. How else would you like me to go about leveling up? Since you’re such a wellspring of information and all. I’m doing my best.”

“Do better. You need to focus solely on leveling, rather than spending time cuddling up to a higher being.”

“Death?”

He shook his head and sighed. “I would have warned you away from her, but what’s done can’t be undone. And we’re both to blame for it. Keeping you alive allowed her to step into the mortal plane.”

“What do you mean?”

Callisto floated by me, arms crossed. “I interfered with her plan to save your life. Because of that, she is allowed to interfere with mine, and because I’m the god of this world, it gave her access to you. And you gave her an anchor here. She can walk among the living and actually interact with the world now.”

“And that’s a bad thing?”

He frowned and dropped onto the bed. “It’s complicated, and it puts us all in danger, especially if the Watchers find out.”

“Watchers?”

“I can’t speak of them further, and they’re not your concern. You just need to focus on getting stronger. The Archangel is already making moves, and you need to catch up. But you’re on the right track. East is where you need to be. Do be careful, though. Things there are…delicate.”

With those words and a parting wave, he vanished, leaving me alone to unpack a lot of nonsense. Death spoke of Callisto like they were friends, but Callisto was mistrustful towards her.

I don’t trust Callisto in the slightest, but he seemed very cautious of Death. Should I be wary of her too?

Probably. It would be the smart move, considering I still don’t know her true motivations.

But she wasn’t my only concern. The Archangel also worried me. Whoever they were, they were already much stronger than I was, which meant I was vulnerable if they started hunting for me.

Captain Reynolds should have more quests available to us. We’ll do enough to get what we need and then get the hell out of here.

But I need to sort out my level and skills before I fall asleep.

As I looked it over, I murmured to myself. “So, I get one skill point every five levels. Good to know. That’s twenty skills if the level cap is one hundred. Let’s check out what new skills I’ve gained.”

Current Skills

Demon Form (First Form)

Skills List

Grasp of the Abyss (Rank 1)

Barrier (Rank 1)

New Skills

Rend (Rank 1): An attack that slashes 10 feet in front of the user. Can damage more than one target at a time and cause the Bleeding debuff.

Damage: 100-150 (Abyssal) (Scales with Strength)

Cost: 50 Stamina

Cooldown: 5 Seconds

Demonic Gaze (Passive): Grants user perfect night vision and the ability to sense the flow of mana in the world. (Can be combined with Tracker and Bloodhound skills) (Scales with Perception)

Cost: 0 Mana

Displacement (Rank 1): Displaces matter in a two-foot sphere.

Damage: Unknown (Spatial)

Range: 50 feet in front of the caster. (Scales with Wisdom)

Cost: 100 Mana

Cooldown: Instant

Damn. All of those are good choices. But I think I can hold off on Demonic Gaze for the time being. That leaves Barrier, Rend, and Displacement.

Barrier was amazing, but with Finn, I didn’t need a skill to stop damage for the time being, which left the other two. Both were powerful, but I was leaning toward Rend solely because it had a greater area of effect than Displacement, and it used stamina rather than mana.

I paused over that.

With how much Demon Form takes out of me, I would only have a few uses of Displacement. I could keep leveling mana, but I have a feeling I’ll need stamina sooner than later. If I have an attack that doesn’t use mana, I can combine Demon Form and Rend to give me a pretty decent boost to my offensive capabilities.

Stamina was still sitting at zero. It was my weakest stat, but I could fix that with the stat points I had. I needed more skills in my arsenal that weren’t mana-based.

With my decision made, I chose Rend.

Rend (Rank 1)

Damage: 100-150 (Abyssal)

Cost: 50 Stamina

Cooldown: 5 Seconds

Strength: 25 (25% Damage Boost)

Progress to Rank 2: 0/50

Twenty-five percent is something else, and it will only go up in my Demon Form. That’s pretty powerful.

I waved away the screen and went back to dealing with my stats.

It was risky to dump so much into Endurance at once, but I needed the boost, so I added fifteen to it, lamenting the loss of Charisma this level.

Stat Page

Strength: 35

Constitution: 25

Perception: 20

Endurance: 15

Agility: 25

Wisdom: 30

Charisma: 25

I hit accept, and a new bar appeared just under my mana bar. It read,

Stamina: 350/350

So, I can use Rend seven times before my stamina depletes. Nine with Demon Form. Seven times in an hour seems like a lot, but as we just found out during our jaunt into the city, that isn’t really anything if we’re outnumbered.

Thoughts kept running through my head, and as I leaned back, I sighed.

“What a week.”

As I glanced around, I smirked as I realized this was the first bit of actual downtime I’d had since this whole mess started, and I had absolutely no idea what to do with myself or my free time now.

I laid back in bed, trying to figure out how to kill time in the apocalypse, when the air shifted as Death appeared. She made no noise, but her presence distorted the feel of the room. I sat up and looked at her.

She knelt at the foot of the bed, wearing the same black dress she always did, and leaned against the wall with a smile that faded as she looked around the room and sniffed.

“Callisto’s been here,” she said.

“He left a few minutes ago.”

She folded her arms under her chest and pursed her lips. “This game of his has made him incredibly bold. I told him to leave you be. He wasn’t to interfere with you.”

I frowned. “And why would you do that?”

“Because he has plans for you, Killian. And they run much deeper than you’d expect. He is not a benevolent god. You know that, right? But he lost much of his power over you when he saved your life. You are mine, and I won’t let him interfere with you any further.”

Death crawled towards me, but the look in my eyes stopped her.

I scowled, crossing my arms as I bit my lip to try and rein in my anger. “Let’s get one thing straight.” I shook my head. “I do not belong to you. I am my own man, a flesh and blood human. You and Callisto are so caught up in these games you’re playing that I don’t even know if you see me as a real person.

“I’m not a doll whose life you can play with however you see fit.”

“Of course you’re not a doll. I know that.” She looked up at me. There was a flash of hurt in her eyes, but she nodded. “You’re the first human to ever bear my sigil. The first real thing I’ve had in a very long time. I know that doesn’t mean much to you, but those are the truest words I’ve spoken. And I can’t bear it to have you caught up in Callisto’s schemes.”

I threw my hands up. “I’m the Demon Lord. I’m already caught up in it, and I have a job to do. I’m going to need his help if I’m to do it.”

Her silver eyes clouded, and she shook her head. “And the more you play, the more you are caught in his web. This goes so much deeper than you can even comprehend, and you are just a pawn in his war.”

“I’m well aware of that. But I chose to play his game.” I stared at her. “I never signed up to play yours.”

She paused, a flash of hurt crossing her eyes. “Killian.”

I sighed. “It’s been a long damn day.”

Death nodded, catching my hint. “I’ll go,” she said, her voice dripping melancholy.

With a rustle of wind, she was gone, and I laid back in bed. The excuse I used on Death was the truth, and before a minute passed, my eyelids grew heavy.

Seconds after I’d fallen asleep, I bolted up in bed. Light was pouring in from my open door, and I looked in to see Adeline standing next to the bed, her arm on my shoulder, shaking me.

“Jesus, Ade, what’s with the rude wake-up?”

She laughed. “Looks like we overslept. It’s almost seven.”

“In the morning?” I asked.

Adeline nodded. “We slept hard.” She shrugged. “Not like we didn’t need it, though.”

“Yeah. I guess you’re right.”

Finn suddenly peeked his head around the doorframe. “Bagels, Hermano!”

He tossed me one, and I caught it, getting cream cheese and chives all over my hands.

“Thanks.” I took a bite and chewed slowly, savoring the small slices of normalcy this world doled out. “Any chance you have some coffee with you?”

“Nope. But I can make some.” He barged past Adeline and set the tray of bagels on the counter before he started working on making coffee.

I sighed and rubbed my face. “Any reason for the sudden wake-up call?”

Adeline shrugged, snagging a bagel that looked to have cream cheese and lox on it. “Figured we’d all slept long enough.” She smirked. “And that even after spending the last few days covered in monster blood, you’d still want to take more quests.”

Callisto’s words yesterday came back to me.

He’s right. We need to keep pushing, keep growing stronger. If we’re going to face New York, we need more levels under our belt.

“You’re right.” I scarfed down the rest of the bagel and snagged the fresh cup of coffee Finn handed me. “Let’s finish eating and go talk to Reynolds, see what other jobs he has for us.”

After we stuffed ourselves with bagels and coffee, the three of us got dressed and then headed down into the bunker to see Captain Reynolds.

He was in his office, asleep at his desk, a mound of papers acting as his pillow as a tendril of drool snaked from his mouth to drip onto a slowly soaking piece of paper.

As we entered, I shut the door with more force than I needed, and as it slammed shut, Reynolds jolted awake.

He blinked his eyes several times and then focused on us before glancing around him. “Fell asleep at my desk again.” He cleared his nose and spat a thick gob of phlegm into the trash next to him, and shook his head before glancing at us. “Cleared the nests out already?”

I nodded. “We did.”

“Hot damn. You were confident the other day, but I still figured it’d take you a lot longer.” He shook his head, whistling. “If only half the men I had were like you three.” He paused and snickered. “Let me guess. You want more quests?”

“That’d be great.”

Reynolds smiled. “A hungry one, aren’t you? Well, these are all the ones I have.” He grabbed a stack of papers and pushed them our way.

It was more of the same monster nests or extermination quests throughout the city.

And as we’d discovered, they paid decently, but one look at the rest of the jobs, and I knew it would be incredibly slow going. They were all spread out through the city, and none of them lined up like the ones before. If we tried to take them all, it would take weeks, at best.

And that was incredibly inefficient.

We needed to pick up the pace.

“Is there anything better?” I asked, dropping the papers back on the desk.

“Better?”

I shrugged. “Better paying, better experience. Just better?”

Reynolds shook his head. “No. Sorry, this is─” He paused, glancing at the three of us and then out the window. “I…” He sighed. “Maybe.” Reynolds tapped his lip. “I wanted to keep this an internal matter, but that might not be such a good idea. I need people with experience on this, and with your track record, you three certainly qualify.” He narrowed his eyes, laying his hands flat on the desk. “But more than that, I need your discretion. This needs to be handled quietly. Understand?”

“Before we agree blindly, tell us about the job first.”

He nodded. “Okay, but not a word past your lips, even if you decline.”

“Agreed.”

Reynolds sighed. “Got a group of former soldiers making trouble in a nearby machine shop. They were some of the first to leave when all this started. They wanted out, and I let them. I didn’t much care about what they did after leaving the service, but that’s changed.”

He paused as someone knocked on the door. First Sergeant Wise came in with a clipboard and a pen in his hands before handing them to Reynolds.

He scribbled something and handed it back as he continued speaking.

“They’re breaking down cars and other hunks of metal and making fortifications, turning the garage into a makeshift fortress. But they’ve been growing bolder, stealing supplies from military designated zones, and there have been reports they’ve had contact with Salvatore and his men.”

“Who’s this Salvatore?” I asked.

“Gang leader. Ruthless. He and his men set up shop in the Grissom Mall and have been a real thorn in my side. I made the mistake of letting them be, since they stayed to their side of the city and left us alone. But now, they’ve started making moves against us.

“But he isn’t your problem now. The deserters are. I don’t want them joining up with Salvatore, so stop them by any means necessary. But I’ll reward you extra if you can convince them to join back up with us.”

Wise coughed into his hand and looked from us to Reynolds. “Are you sure that’s a good idea, Captain? Jeremy and his men racked up enough infractions even before the apocalypse.”

Annoyance flashed in his eyes as he glanced at the First Sergeant. “I’m sure that with Holt’s squad KIA, we need all the men we can get.”

I held my hands up, not wanting to get in the middle of whatever they were arguing about. “Can we just get the quest?”

Reynolds glanced up. “Oh, right.”

A quest notification flashed in front of me.

Side Quest: Chop the Chop Shop!

Deal with the group located in Wilson’s Auto Shop

Difficulty: Medium

Reward: 724 Exp

300 AC

“We’ll get it done.”

“Excellent,” Reynolds said. “Then get going. It’s a bit of a hike.”

The three of us sighed as we exited and headed back out of the fort.

For the second time in as many days, we found ourselves on the other side of the gated compound, and I sighed.

“Alright, Wilson’s Auto is what, like three miles away?”

“Something like that, I think. My dad used to go there whenever he needed work done on his mustang,” Adeline said.

“Where is he, anyway?” Finn asked.

“Dead,” she replied tersely. “Hopefully, rotting in hell.”

At that, Finn and I looked at each other and wisely dropped the subject.

“Well, let’s get going.”

Chapter 16- Depths of Depravity

Fort Alexander was on the edge of the city, but the garage we were heading to was practically out of the city itself. There was nothing but the countryside past the garage and a couple of gas stations. It was all familiar because Omar, Sarah, and I used to come out this way to stay at Omar’s cabin on weekends to get away when we needed a break from school, which was often.

We never did more than stay inside and game, but it was well stocked with food and gear, which might be worth a look. Wonder if anyone’s there?

I shook my head.

I doubt it.

Since we stayed out of the city itself, we encountered almost no signs of life. There were a few stray dogs and cats and a couple of scavengers, but they took off running into the woods as soon as they saw us coming. I wasn’t worried about the humans so much, but it had been a while since we’d seen any sign of Callisto’s pets, which bothered me.

“I don’t know what worries me more. Running across dozens of Callisto’s pets, or not seeing a single sign of them.”

“Might not have to deal with any,” Adeline said as we passed a pair of knocked-over garbage cans and two dogs growling, trying to fight over the scraps. “There probably ain’t a lot of people out this way.”

“I don’t know,” Finn said. “In the city, at least you knew you were bound to run across at least a few of them, but out here. There could be hundreds or none at all.”

“Yeah, Schrodinger is a real asshole sometimes,” I said.

“Well, we’ve killed enough of the Carnival Beasts that we’ve seen all their tricks. But the Charade Beasts, and those Midnight Beasts?” Adeline said.

I shook my head. “Seems there’s a lot of weird going around, and I don’t want it creeping up on us.”

“Shame about all the animals, though,” Finn said, motioning toward the dogs.

“Yeah. But I’m more worried about us than them.”

He shook his head. “Not an animal lover, Kill?”

I shrugged. “Oh, I love animals. But right now, they’re not even in my top hundred concerns.” I glanced at him. “I’m guessing you like them?”

Finn nodded. “Wanted to be a vet. Joined the military to pay for college.” He sighed. “Looks like that dream is well and truly gone now.”

“If it makes you feel better, I think I got the worst career change out of all of us.”

Finn and Adeline laughed.

“Yeah, guess you got the short end of that stick, didn’t you?” he said.

We all laughed before the conversation slowly faded as we focused on watching out for anything sneaking up on us. It was nerve-wracking, but it beat getting a chunk bitten out of my ass because we let our guard down.

After an hour and a half of careful walking, we reached the road that would take us to the garage. We stopped and got off the main road, looping around to the tree line so we wouldn’t immediately be noticed as we approached.

I got a good look at the garage when it came into view.

The red brick building was on the larger side for a single story, with a raised roof. Two large garage doors were closed so we couldn’t see inside, but around the perimeter of the shop were scrap heaps and makeshift barricades made from car parts and a ton of other barely recognizable junk that formed a nearly walled-off compound.

Finn whistled softly and motioned us to stay low and follow him. We crept through a bush, and Finn pulled out a set of binoculars and called out to us what he saw.

“Two men stationed on the roof, both have rifles, look like cheap AR-15s. Iron sights, so they likely can’t hit us from here, that’s a good sign, but if we don’t take them out, they’ll light us up the moment they see us.”

“Should we talk to them, see if we can’t negotiate?” I asked.

He shook his head. “The way they’re holding their guns. They're far more liable to open fire or call for reinforcements before we’d get a word out. Either way, we’d be outgunned and at their mercy. The way I see it, it’s better to take out a few and see if we can’t get the drop on the others. That’s probably our best chance to convince them to come back with us.”

“Alright,” I said, deferring to Finn this time. “What’s the plan?”

“With our weapons, none of us are optimized for distance shooting. And even with our suppressors, unless they’re doing machining inside, they’ll hear us. We need to get closer to them, but all that open ground is a gamble. If we try to cross and they see us, we’re dead.”

“Got it,” I said as I took in the terrain. An idea formed in the back of my head. It wasn’t a good one, and it was risky as hell, but it was the only thing I could think of that even remotely mitigated the chance of us dying. “I have a plan. Watch my back if things kickoff.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, I was moving, not bothering to wait for a response. I activated my Demon Form and took off at a dead sprint, hoping I wasn’t about to become my least favorite cheese.

With Demon Form and my increased Agility, I practically glided across the grass.

My timing or luck was true, and I made it to the first barricade without being spotted. Half of a rusted-out Chevelle tipped on its side gave me plenty of cover as I waited for the guards to turn away. A minute later and they disappeared. I hopped over the side of the car and made it to the brick wall of the garage without anyone seeing me.

Right beside me was a heavy chain-link fence rusted with age that gave me a window to a bunch of dead grass and wooden pallets topped with twisted and rusting scraps of metal.

Wonder if this will work?

I glanced down at my clawed hand. The long black nails protruded two inches from my finger and looked sharp enough to cut through steel. I scratched at the cement wall and peeled a deep groove in the brick.

Pushing harder, my entire nail sunk into it.

I grinned as I stowed my rifle and gripped all ten of my nails into the side of the building and slowly started climbing to the roof. My talons easily held, but my feet had nothing but the soles of my boots to use for traction, and it made for an uncomfortable climb. My arms burned with fatigue by the time I hauled my skinny ass over the lip of the roof.

The men at the edge of the roof were rough and definitely needed a shower and a shave. They were turned away from me, staring out towards the roads. Their grips on their rifles were lax as they smoked cigarettes while they playfully bickered back and forth about something. I only caught a few words, as I was too focused on remaining undetected to pay attention.

I drew my M4 as silently as I could and listened for half a second. The whine of a drill going below me sent slight vibrations through the roof, coming from the ground level.

Alright, now’s a good a time as any.

Take the shots.

I lined up my sights, the red dot centered on thug one. But as I put pressure on the trigger, my sight started weaving all over.

My hands shook, and my heart was in my ears. Sand filled my mouth as I dry swallowed and tried to pull the trigger.

It was so easy when the target was a monster. But this was the first time I’d ever drawn down on a human.

Everything had gone right. I had the perfect angle. One pull of the trigger was all it would take.

But I couldn’t.

My body fought against me.

Damn it!

I couldn’t do it. Even though I had them dead to rights, I couldn’t commit murder.

Plan B it is, then. Fuck me and my soft heart. This is going to get us killed.

I stood, pointing my barrel at the two guards. They still hadn’t noticed anything, and I was only a few feet from them with my heart pounding when I spoke.

“Hey, you guys got a light?” I asked, and they jerked at my voice, turning and bringing their weapons to bear. “Go for your weapons, and I kill you,” I lied.

They froze and looked at the gun in my hands, and I tried to keep my face impassive, but one look at my black eyes and horns, and I knew I didn’t need to bluff them. My Demon Form was plenty intimidating on its own.

“Oh God! Don’t kill me!” one of them screeched and threw his weapon down and got on his knees in prayer while the other stared slack-jawed at the devil made manifest. “Wh─what do you want?”

“You to be quiet and not make a sound,” I said, and they shut up instantly.

I took their rifles and demanded they hand over any other weapons or ammo and lay face down on the roof. I unloaded both weapons and tossed them off the roof and held my fist up to let Finn and Adeline know it was safe to approach.

They both ran from the bushes and climbed up using the metal fence. I offered them both a hand and helped them up. Wasting no time, Finn pulled out two sets of zip ties and cuffed our prisoners, ripping shreds of their shirts and stuffing them in their mouths like suckling pigs.

“Nice job, you fucking moron!” Finn said, seething, looking like he wanted to slug me. “Next time you run off on your own, I’m taking a nail gun to your ass!”

Adeline brushed against my arm. “We’re a team, Kill. You can’t keep forgetting that to run off and put your life in danger. We need to work together.”

“It worked, didn’t it?”

“This time, but we’re your friends─”

“Are you? Because a week ago, you wanted to put a bullet in my head, and Finn was scared to death of me.”

Adeline smirked and then punched me. “That was a week ago, idiot. Lots happened since then.”

“Can we talk about this when we’re not in the middle of a quest?” Finn hissed and waved us over to him.

Adeline and I looked at each other and shared a small smile.

Maybe she’s right.

We went over to Finn while we discussed a plan of attack. We had two minutes before my Demon Form ended, so whatever we were going to do needed to happen quickly.

I sat back on the roof and was surprised by how thin the material was. It was nothing but cheap black shingles, and when I peeled one up, I found wood and pink insulation.

Shoddy construction. I may have a more challenging time with concrete and metal, but in my Demon Form, I could rip through this in seconds.

This gives me an idea.

“How about we go for a theatrical approach?”

“What do you mean?” Finn asked.

“How about you two sweep in from the entrance and get everyone’s attention? With your classes, you’re damn intimidating. Then, while all eyes are on you, I bust in through the roof. A little shock and awe and we use the confusion to subdue everyone?”

“Risky, foolish, with a high likelihood of going awry, but it sounds fun as hell. And I don’t have any better plan than three of us going in all at once. I’m game.”

Adeline smiled at the thought of the plan, and with no better options, they climbed down and went around to the entrance and got ready to go in.

With any luck, no one will have a hand on a weapon, and we can do this without bloodshed.

I listened intently for the signal, and when the door slammed against the wall, it was time to move. I knelt, poised over the center of the roof.

I started ripping apart the shingles and wood, and in no time at all, I was through. All sounds stopped from within until a single gunshot split the air. Half a dozen people had their hands in the air, and one man bled from a wound in his leg. He was on the floor, and his screams drowned out my digging.

They hadn’t noticed me, and they were so fixated on Finn and Adeline, no one spotted the sunlight on the ground or the silhouette of the horned demon.

I dropped through the hole and landed just shy of one of the men. The barrel of my gun was in his face, and I think he fell back because of the shock, rather than by my appearance, though everyone else noticed and gasped in terror. I sure as hell had the room's undivided attention.

“Make a move towards a weapon, and I kill everyone,” I growled, putting forced gruffness in my voice.

“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, what the hell are you?”

“Your worst nightmare.”

The man, clearly a former soldier, in dirt and grease-stained fatigues, paled and started shaking.

The others were all male, all ex-soldiers who looked like they’d been living rough, and like the men above, they all needed a shower.

“Make a move, and you all die. Understand?” I turned back to Finn and Adeline.

Finn stood impassively in his Abyssal Armor, the shadows over his face forming a twisted smile, and Adeline sauntered behind him, holding her hands aloft. In her palms resided two crimson balls of fire, illuminating the darkened garage with hellfire.

With them at my back, I felt invincible and terrifying. “Hell yeah, guys. Now what to do with them?”

At that moment, Demon Form timed out, and I was back to my usual self as my little blue mana bar in the corner of my vision started slowly ticking back to full.

The deserters looked up, even more shocked than when I’d burst in from the ceiling. “He’s just a kid,” one of them said.

The tension in the air grew stiff, and the former soldiers glanced over at each other. I could guess what they were thinking, and I had to put a stop to any thoughts of rebellion.

I snapped my gun at the one who’d spoken. “Yeah, and this kid has a rifle trained on you, so I dare you to test me.”

They all froze, not moving.

“That’s what I thought.”

Finn produced even more zip ties and began tying them up and taking their weapons while Adeline and I supervised. In under two minutes, we’d tied everyone up. All of them had concealed pistols but hadn’t been brave enough to draw them.

The man with the bleeding leg was the only one left, but Adeline pressed her palm to the wound and seared it shut while I held his mouth shut. The stench of burnt flesh filled the air and made me want to gag, but I choked back my bile. He screamed and writhed, but within a second, it was over.

Adeline stood and wiped her palms on her jeans. “There, if he doesn’t bleed to death in an hour or so, he’ll heal up just fine.”

“Good.” I stepped back and stared at each man before I spoke. “I’m giving you all a choice. On behalf of Captain Reynolds, he offers to accept you back into the Army. You can agree to join, or you can die. Your choice.”

All at once, they shouted that they would join back gladly, and I smiled.

Easier than I thought.

Alright, time to haul their asses back and complete the quest.

Adeline used a few more ties to form a chain gang on the prisoners and tied their hands together, forming a long line of men. Finn went to look around the shop while I picked up and cataloged all the weapons the men had.

A good bunch of guns, but there really wasn’t a way for us to carry them all back unless we wanted to have the men carry them empty.

It bore considering, but as I was in the middle of unloading all of them. Finn walked up behind me.

“You need to see this,” he said, his voice heavy. Haunted.

I knew whatever it was, I wouldn’t like it, but I turned and followed him anyway.

He led me out of the garage, past the rows of broken-down cars, and into what I assumed used to be the office section. White painted walls. A cheap door sloppily painted the same shade as the walls and a dark tinted window. It blocked out what was in the room itself.

Finn canceled his Abyssal Armor and stood in the doorway. He turned back with a horrified expression on his face. Rage, disgust, and a slew of other emotions filled his eyes in rapid succession.

I walked past him, and each step amplified my discomfort. He moved out of the doorway and allowed me to enter.

The small room had once been an office, but it had been cleared of everything except for one thing.

A once white mattress lay on the floor and was gray, sweat and semen stains covered it, and it emitted a villainous odor that made my eyes water, but the mattress itself was nothing compared to the sight that would be seared into my brain until the day I died.

A young woman was lying on the mattress, naked and badly abused. Numerous dark bruises and cuts riddled her skin, some of which were fresh and bled freely. Her face was swollen and purple as if she’d been beaten repeatedly, and I couldn’t make out any discernible features other than her lank and greasy brown hair. Her hands were bound by chains on each wrist and bolted into the concrete wall, which didn’t even allow her to cover herself.

There were bloody bite marks around her breasts and thighs as if she’d been savaged by a wild animal.

I took all of this in mechanically, my mind absorbing the details almost clinically, like I was watching an incredible visceral horror movie rather than staring at a flesh and blood human being. I took it all in before a single thought struck me.

She’s my sister’s age.

And then I shattered.

I lost myself to a pit of anger so deep an ocean couldn’t fill it.

Pitch black rage consumed me as I stormed out of the room, and I didn’t even stop for a second to consider the cost of what I was about to do.

“Killian.” Adeline gasped as she saw the look on my face.

She hadn’t seen the room, hadn’t had to witness the horror that would never leave me, but she knew I was drowning, and she tried to save me.

Her hand was soft in mine, and she wrapped me in a hug so tight my ribs creaked. She pressed into me as if she could swallow some of the pain, but nothing could erase the sight of what I’d seen. I shrugged out of her embrace and pushed her aside.

The deserters were huddled together in a cluster in the center of the garage.

I raised my gun.

And this time, I didn’t hesitate.

I killed them.

I killed them all.

When my M4 clicked empty, I drew my Glock and went to the roof. I climbed the rusted ladder and was outside in a minute. As I stared into the eyes of the men I’d left tied up, their muffled shouts and terrified eyes pleaded with me.

I put two bullets in their heads.

Combat Results!

9 Killed (Human): 378 Exp!

Experience Boost (17.5%): 66 Exp!

Total Gain: 444 Exp!

AC Earned: 1,237!

Level Up!

Side Quest: Chop the Chop Shop Completed!

Reward: 724 Exp!

Experience Boost (17.5%): 127 Exp!

Total Gain: 851 Exp!

AC Earned: 300!

I waved the notifications away and climbed to the ground. I went around the front of the garage and leaned back against the brick wall and slid to the concrete. I stayed there for a long time, staring at my hands. There were several streaks of blood on them, bright red that I smudged and smeared as I tried to wipe it away, only to let it soak into my skin.

My entire body shook, and I tried to hold it in, but I couldn’t.

I fell to my knees and screamed. I screamed in rage and misery for the girl inside, for my family that I didn’t know if I’d ever see again, and finally, I screamed for the piece of my humanity that I’d lost.

At some point, my voice tore, and I just knelt there, staring at my crimson-stained hands as if to force the blood on them to make sense to my fractured psyche.

But it didn’t. It couldn’t.

Eventually, I stood, took a deep breath, and steeled myself.

I didn’t want to go back in there, didn’t want to witness what they had done.

Or what I had done.

But I didn’t have a choice. I wasn’t going to leave her chained up for another second.

I went back in to find a small ocean of blood pooling on the floor and Finn and Adeline leaning against the walls with misery and pain in their eyes.

They looked at me with such pitying gazes that my heart broke all over again, but I couldn’t stop and think, couldn’t slow down for a second, or I’d never get back up again. I ignored them and went into the room.

The woman hadn’t moved an inch, and if not for the rising and falling of her chest, I would have thought her dead. Her wounds had healed, but she was weak, her breathing labored. Without a mental command or a thought, Demon Form activated, and my mana bar plummeted. I walked over and tore the chains binding her wrists.

I picked her up as gingerly as I could. She settled into my arms and groaned.

“No…no more,” she pleaded with a hoarse voice.

“Don’t worry. I won’t hurt you. No one will ever hurt you again,” I said before my voice choked and my raw throat burned.

I took her in my arms and carried her out of the building, only stopping long enough to grab a spare T-shirt to cover her. I didn’t put her down, so Finn covered her as best he could, and we all left without saying a word.

“It’s too far back to the base, but there’s a cabin not far from here that we can stay at,” I said and didn’t bother waiting before setting a strong pace and heading into the countryside.

The nameless woman was thin from lack of food, and with my added Strength, it was like she weighed nothing at all. As if she could float away at any minute.

I held her tighter as we walked. After five minutes, Demon Form faded, and the weightless girl suddenly pressed heavier against me. My stride stumbled, but I squared my shoulders and gritted my teeth as a burning ache settled into my back and arms.

Though I was glad for the pain, it gave me something to focus on while I walked. I was consumed with keeping her safe and comfortable in my arms, and the burning ache kept me distracted from thinking about what I’d done.

Half an hour later and the cabin came into sight.

It was an actual wooden cabin that Omar’s dad had built when we were all little kids. It wasn’t large, but it was cozy and clean, with a walnut stain on the wood and charcoal shingles. The gravel that led up the driveway was new, and all of it was pristine gray, and it crunched loudly as we walked up.

There was a spare key hidden in the eaves. It was a small piece of leftover wood glued on that was just wide enough to hold the key, and it blended in so well that you’d never see it unless you knew it was there. I told Finn about it, and he unlocked the door, and I went and set the girl on the couch. Trying not to move her as much as possible.

As soon as she was out of my hands, I dropped to the ground as my arms went numb. I rested for just a second, but the girl was filthy and weak from the abuse. So as soon as I caught my breath, I found some soap and washrags in the cabinet under the sink and heated some water on the stove.

I gave her some vitamins and sleeping medicine and hoped it would help. I left her in Adeline’s capable hands to clean her as Finn and I checked over the perimeter to make sure we were alone.

It was well past noon by the time we were done, and I was utterly exhausted.

Adeline came in with some clean clothes Sarah must have left at some point, but they looked like they might fit her well enough. I gave them some privacy while Adeline dressed the girl and went outside.

The best part of the cabin was the view. From the front porch, the house overlooked a large pond just across the road. It was private property, but Omar’s dad was friends with the owner, and he allowed us to use it whenever we wanted.

A wooden dock stretched a good bit out to the lake. And it seemed as good a spot as any to sit and have a mental breakdown.

I walked down to the lake and dropped all my gear in a neat pile by the sycamore tree next to the dock. The leaves fell off and into the lake, but I didn’t plan to go swimming in the icy water.

I took off my shoes, sat back on the dock, settled in, and broke down entirely.

Chapter 17- Truth and Reconciliation

The air chilled me to the bone and only grew colder as early afternoon turned into evening. I sat huddled into myself on the dock and tried to come to terms with what I’d done.

What I had to do.

I’d slaughtered them with no hesitation. My rage clouded everything and made it so easy in the moment. A slight pull of the trigger was all it took to end the lives of over half a dozen men.

Men? No. They weren’t men. They were monsters, worse than anything Callisto could hope to summon.

I may have been the Demon Lord, but I wasn’t evil.

They were. And they deserved to die.

That was the problem, though. I knew they needed to die, and a part of me enjoyed playing executioner.

Can I reconcile the part of me that relished in their deaths? Can I still call myself human?

I’d enjoyed killing them for what they’d done, and I was horrified at myself because of it.

I wanted to keep my humanity intact through this, but that was a naïve child’s pipe dream.

My hands were always going to end up bloody. I just didn’t want to accept it.

This world wasn’t so kind anymore, and even if it had only been a few days since it started for me, it felt like a lifetime.

It took less than a week for me to spill human blood. I carved a piece of myself out to do it too. What am I going to look like in a month? In a year? Who am I going to be when this is all over with?

I thought I could destroy the world without getting my own hands dirty. And that made me a fool.

I sat for hours and slowly came to terms with my actions. It came easier than I thought. A part of me understood the righteousness of their deaths, that they all deserved their fates. That fact comforted me and took away most of the guilt in my heart.

But it didn’t disappear completely. Nor should it.

I needed to feel the weight of it, or else I really would be a monster, but I wasn’t going to sit here any longer and feel sorry for what I’d done.

I would do it again to save her, to save anyone in that situation.

It was a comforting bit of knowledge, and it helped to get me off my ass.

The first thing I did was pull up my stats. I’d leveled up, and sitting on the stats wasn’t a smart idea.

When I did the math, I figured out that each human I killed was worth forty-two experience points.

Well, it looks like murder is the answer to everything.

I snorted and laughed because I had to. I had to laugh, or I would lose it all over again.

As I waved away the results of my slaughter, I focused on my status.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 450/450 (495)

Mana: 500/500

Stamina: 350/350

Level: 11

Exp: 945/1286

15 Stat Points Available!

I flicked over to my stats and added five to Agility, five to Endurance to bring it up, and five to Charisma to keep gaining that experience boost.

Stat Page

Strength: 35

Constitution: 25

Perception: 20

Endurance: 20

Agility: 30

Wisdom: 30

Charisma: 30

By the time I was done, my body ached. Soreness had long set in from staying in one position for so long, and my stomach was screaming at me.

Let’s go check on everyone and get some food.

I walked back up to the cabin slowly, letting my muscles work out the tightness.

Inside, I found Adeline in the rocking chair by the couch. She’d tied her blue hair back in a ponytail and had changed clothes. She wore one of Omar’s shirts that was a little too big on her. She checked on the girl while Finn banged around in the kitchen, cooking something.

“Smells good,” I said as I walked in.

Adeline looked up at my voice, and her face softened. “Killian…” she trailed off.

“I’m fine, I promise. I just needed some time to myself.”

She got up from the chair and crossed the room, wrapping me in a tight hug. Her hands clung to my neck tightly as she squeezed. “I’m sorry. You shouldn’t have put that burden entirely on yourself.”

I shook my head as I pulled back. “Better me than you.”

“That’s not how this works, Kill. We’re a team, and more than that, we’re friends.” She paused when I frowned. “And we are friends, Killian. I know we had a rocky start, but you’re stuck with me now.”

Adeline flashed me a wide smile as Finn came around the corner.

“Me too, Hermano. We’re not going anywhere.”

“Thanks, guys. I’m sorry. I’m just having a hard time trusting people these days.”

“Yeah, and you think we aren’t?” Adeline said as she punched me in the arm. “But the two of us aren’t people. We’re the Demon Lord’s minions.”

Finn rounded the corner again, this time with pasta sauce on his cheek and a sauce-stained ladle in his hands. “Nope, you’re a minion. I’m still just an underling.”

I laughed, and it helped ease so much of the lingering tension in my chest. “Fine, you can be a minion too.”

He pumped his fist in the air. “Success!”

“How’s the girl?” I asked.

Adeline glanced over at her. She was sleeping deeply with a thick quilt over her. “She’ll live. Her Mantles regeneration took care of the wounds, though a little food and water probably wouldn’t hurt either. But beyond that…I just don’t know.”

I sighed, but it was the best I could hope for.

Maybe some rest will do her body some good, but Adeline is right. She might never be the same after.

Rage welled in my heart again, and I had to walk away, or I wouldn’t have been able to stop it from consuming me again.

My rumbling stomach chose that moment to growl, and food was the best way to take my mind off things.

I went into the kitchen to see what Finn was whipping up. It looked like some sort of pasta with tomato sauce and frozen deer meat that had been left in the deep freezer.

“Spaghetti?” I asked.

Finn smiled. “Redneck rigatoni, best I could do with what I had.”

He went back to cooking, and twenty minutes later, we were all around the table eating. It was good; the pasta was cooked perfectly, and Finn had seasoned the meat and sauce enough that it was tangy and delicious.

It filled the screaming void that was my stomach, and we talked and joked together while we ate. For a moment, it was just the three of us, and we could all pretend everything was right with the world.

When dinner was over, we covered the leftovers for when the girl woke up, and we called it a night.

I took a brief shower in the master bedroom and dressed in more casual clothing.

There were two bedrooms in the cabin, and I let Finn and Adeline have the master while I took Omar’s. I didn’t go to bed right away. I stayed and sat on the love seat and watched over the girl for a while. She was dead to the world, and I doubted a thunderstorm would have woken her.

I knew that sleep would elude me for some time, and staring at the girl only stoked my fury. I grabbed my pistol and threw on my coat. Shutting the door as softly as I could, I headed back down to the docks for some peace and quiet. The night air was frigid and caught my breath as I stepped out, but I ignored it and kept walking.

The pond was still, but the occasional gust of wind sent dead leaves spiraling to shatter the placid water. I dropped back down almost in the exact spot I’d been a few hours previously. Though I was less conflicted, the radiant night sky had a way of drawing out my melancholy.

A ruffling of fabric blown about in the wind behind me alerted me to her presence.

“Good evening, Death,” I said with a smile.

“Good evening, Killian.” She lowered down to wrap her arms around my neck. “I’m sorry for what you had to do today. It’s left a mark on your soul, hasn’t it?”

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. She came around and sat beside me, laying her head on my shoulder.

“My words can’t erase the pain you feel, but I can try to ease some of your burdens. You did the right thing. Death clung to that place like a beacon of misery. That girl is not the first to have suffered in that place. Many endured what she did, only to be slaughtered and cast into shallow graves. Their souls were tortured, haunted as they entered my domain.

“You saved her and many more from suffering the same gruesome fate.”

“Still, doesn’t change that I’m a killer.”

“You were always fated to be a killer, but that doesn’t make you a murderer.” Death smiled at me. It was a warm smile that banished my darkness. “Your kind have perfected the art of justification. You can and will justify any number of atrocities you commit and proclaim them noble and just, for nothing but the sake of satisfying your weak hearts. The men you killed easily justified their actions too. But no action has ever been more justified than your removing them from this plane of existence.

“That was true justice.”

Her words chipped away at the dark sliver I’d shoved in my soul and soothed my mind. I smiled at her and took her hand that rested on my lap.

“Thank you.”

She squeezed my hand and leaned over to press her lips to my cheek. “You’re more than welcome.”

A stiff breeze rolled in from the lake and sent shivers up my spine. “It’s cold. Would you like to come inside?”

“I’d like that very much.”

I stood and helped her to her feet, and we walked, hand in hand, back to the cabin. I didn’t want to talk to her and wake up the sleeping girl, so I took Death to the bedroom.

It was smaller than it had been when Omar and I were kids, but that was because I had grown up. The full-sized bed had been replaced with a queen, but the thick wool comforter was nearly identical to back then.

The rest of the room was sparse, with only a handmade wooden dresser and nightstand. The large bay window on the opposite end of the wall had an unobstructed view of the moon as it bathed the dark room in muted blue light.

“The view is beautiful in here.”

“Yeah.” I went to the window and opened it just a crack to let a little cold air in. “When Omar and I were little, we’d lay at the foot of the bed for hours, imagining we were spacemen, flying through the stars, going on missions. You know, kid stuff.”

“You must miss them.”

“Very much. Though I’m glad they don’t have to go through this. That’s the only comfort I have.”

Death came over and wound her arm through mine. Despite everything that had happened between us and me still knowing very little about her, her mere touch calmed me, and I enjoyed it. We stayed that way for a while, just staring at the moon, lost in our thoughts.

“I don’t like how we ended things yesterday,” she said.

“Yeah. Me too, I guess. But it’s not like I don’t know Callisto is using me. He’s leading me like a puppet on strings.” I glanced at her. “But I don’t need a second puppeteer adding even more strings.”

She nodded. “I understand. I was only trying to cut a few of those strings to help. It may not have been fair of me to try and speak on your behalf, but as I told you before. This is a dangerous game Callisto is playing, more than you know. And it could doom even the immortals.”

Her words brought back something Callisto had said, and I didn’t understand what it meant. I figured Death would be more forthcoming.

“Because of the Watchers?” I asked.

As soon as it left my mouth, Death’s eyes grew dark.

“Damn him!” she cursed, sitting up in a rush. “Damn him and his mouth!”

“What? Why are you angry?” I asked.

“Because he should never have said anything to you about them. He’s always doing this! Pushing boundaries as much as he can.” Her voice strained and rose by an octave. “He’s always meddling! But if he pushes things too much, hell will follow.”

I chuckled, finding humor in the dichotomy between Callisto and Death. “You know, Callisto said the same thing about you, not in those words, but that you were tempting them by being here with me.”

“What the hell would he know about it? He wasn’t here when they came to this world and burned everyone to ash!”

“Are you talking about the Culling?”

She grabbed the pillow next to me and held it to her face, screaming for all she was worth. When she was done, she threw it against the wall halfheartedly, and it thumped softly against the window.

“Damn him,” she said, her voice cracking.

“Hey, hey, hey,” I said, pulling her into a hug. She was shaking with fury but calmed when I wrapped my arms around her waist. “It’s okay, don’t get so worked up about it.”

She turned to face me with panic and worry across her face. “No, you don’t understand, Killian. If he gets their attention and brings them back, it’ll ruin everything. They are not beings to make light of, and I can’t fight them alone.”

“Who are they?”

She shook her head. “I can’t say. Far too many oaths bind me, and I can’t directly speak of them. I can only say that they are like me, beings of creation, but not of this universe.”

I really didn’t know what to say. I was lost in the implications of what she was saying, but I knew she was terrified and that, in turn, scared the hell out of me.

Even Callisto said she was dangerous, and if he’s cautious of her, that means she’s powerful. And she’s afraid of whatever these Watchers are.

I snorted. “I’m so far out of my depth here that it isn’t even funny. First gods, then the Incarnation of Death, and now interdimensional beings.” I rubbed my eyes and wiped my face. “What even is my life anymore?”

She gave a hollow laugh and looked up at me. “The universe is a lot stranger than humanity could ever hope to understand. Even this game Callisto’s playing is mild compared to what’s really out there.”

I shook my head. “That doesn’t comfort me in the slightest.”

“The truth is rarely comforting, but it’s always worth hearing,” she said.

I placed an arm on her shoulder, and she immediately curled into me, laying her head on my chest as we stared out the window.

We stayed like that for a long time, and though I was still conflicted about my feelings toward her, I couldn’t deny that holding her felt like the most natural thing in the world.

Eventually, she let out a breath and trailed her fingers over my hand. “I’m sorry. It’s unbecoming for one such as myself to lose my composure. I shouldn’t have gotten angry.”

I nodded. “It’s fine. I understand anger.” I scoffed. “After today. I understand anger.” I paused and glanced at her, giving her a half-smile. “You know, I told myself that my emotions had no place in this new world we find ourselves in. And I was right. There’s no place for a soft heart anymore.”

“You’re wrong, Killian.” Death smiled and wound her arm through mine. She turned around and flicked my nose. “Don’t go giving up your humanity so easily. You may think trust is the most valuable resource right now. But it isn’t. Not by a long shot. Trust can be won and lost, bought and sold. Borrowed and given freely. It’s easier to gain than you might believe right now. But your humanity? That spark of kindness that makes you who you are? Once lost, it can never be returned.”

“Yeah.” I scoffed. “I’m well aware.”

She nodded. “You traded a sliver away, and you can’t get that back. But I think you gained something just as valuable in exchange.”

“And what would that be?” I asked.

“Resolve.” Death rested her finger along my sternum, right next to my heart. “Resolve to do what must be done to preserve what remains of your humanity. Tell me. Which would have cost more of your humanity? Killing those men for what they had done and would continue to do? Or ignoring it, letting them walk back into the military without a shred of punishment?”

I turned away, staring out at the night sky.

Death smiled, nodding as she leaned against me.

Though it was peaceful, inside, my mind and emotions were conflicted.

She’s right. I have to keep going, no matter what. I don’t have any other choice. I resigned myself to doing whatever it took the moment I accepted the mantle. Even if I have to wade through an ocean of blood to get to the end, it won’t matter, because I can undo everything when I set the world right again. I can fix any problem when I get my wish.

My mind was resolute, and I let all the pent-up emotions from the past few days fade away, all the anger and bitterness, the unfairness and unimaginable pressure that rested on my shoulders.

None of it mattered in the face of my goal.

And all it would do was distract me.

We stayed like that for a time, but the last few days had been draining, mentally and physically, and my body ached in ways that went beyond my muscles and bones. The room was comfortable, and Death was soft and warm, and she smelled sweet, like flowers. The scent caused my eyelids to grow heavy.

“Do you mind if I sleep with you?” Death asked.

I paused. Part of me wanted to say no, but I didn’t want to be alone right now.

I nodded. “Maybe you’ll keep the nightmares at bay.”

She smiled as I got out of bed and pulled the covers down. “Don’t worry. I can keep the Black Dreamer far away. The Incarnation of Nightmares wouldn’t dare go against me.”

“You realize that I have no idea what that means, right?”

Death chuckled as I climbed into bed, and she joined me, scooting to lie beside me. She still wore her black dress, and it bunched around her thighs, giving me a glimpse of purple silk.

She tilted her head to me as a dark smile lifted the corner of her mouth. Death shifted and lifted her dress, teasing her smooth abdomen as her eyes smoldered. “Like what you see?”

I blushed. “Would you like a shirt? We have plenty.”

“Nope. I like your eyes on me. You look at me as you once did. That makes me happy.”

That brought up a very important question. I scratched my cheek and looked away to stare out the window. “Um, have we─did we ever…”

“What? Sleep together?”

I nodded. “Yeah. That.”

“We have not,” she said with a slight shake of her head. “Though not because we didn’t want to. It was just never the right time.” She scooted even closer to me and flashed me a wicked smile. “Though don’t get any funny ideas, mister. Tonight isn’t the right time either.”

I snorted and laid back on the pillow, choosing to stare at the wooden ceiling instead of the moon. After a second, I closed my eyes and propped my arms behind my head.

“On that, we agree, at least.” I sighed. “My world is so messed up right now. Every single person in my life at this moment wasn’t there a week ago. Everything has changed so drastically in such a short time that I can’t even think about being romantic with anyone right now.”

“One day maybe,” Death said as she laid down next to me as her arm came around my chest. She snuggled close to me, and her warmth perfectly combated the whistling wind that brought the calming scent of winter drifting through the room. “When the time is right. But tonight, at least, let me keep you company until you fall asleep. What shall we talk about?”

“History,” I said. “You’ve lived for centuries─”

“Millennia, actually.” She giggled. “But I get your point. Would you like to continue from where we left off?”

“That sounds lovely.”

Death sighed and snuggled closer to me. “Where was I again? Oh right. Vesuvius shook like the entire world was ending, and then it erupted, billowing black death as ash blanketed the sky...”

As she spoke, I couldn’t help but be enraptured by her voice as she told the detailed accounts of so many historical events. Death had an excellent memory and talked for hours about history and notable events that she enjoyed. She put even Mr. Mitchells to shame with how well she could tell a story.

It was what eventually lulled me to sleep, and I settled under the blankets with Death curled around me, whispering into my ear as I drifted off into a deep sleep.

It wasn’t desperately early when I awoke. I took a guess and said eight or so.

I guess I needed the sleep. But what I really need is a watch. I should buy one when I get back to the fort.

Death lay next to me, still snuggled close, though at some point she’d lost her dress and was lying next to me in just her underwear. She clutched my hand to her chest, and it was so adorable that I wouldn’t have moved if the bed was on fire.

She really is cute, especially when she’s sleeping. I guess I can see why the me I’ve forgotten would like her.

I brushed her hair out of her face and let her rest.

Death stirred about half an hour later and started sniffing the air. “Mmm, breakfast,” she said and sat up.

“Can you eat?” I asked as I scooted back to lean against the headboard.

“I can, though it does nothing for me other than taste good. One of the many advantages I have over the gods.”

“Well, let’s go before it gets cold,” I said as I hopped out of bed and threw on some clothes.

Death was going to walk out topless, but I grabbed a spare shirt from the dresser. It was Omar’s and was a size too big for her and said, Silence is golden, but duct tape is silver across it, but it would do.

Before we left, I realized that this would be the first time that Finn and Adeline would be meeting Death, and I still hadn’t forgotten the way they’d made me the butt of their jokes the other day. A slightly devious grin broke over my face as I turned back to Death.

She giggled as she took in my face. “You’ve got that wicked smirk that you always have when you’ve got something up your sleeve. Do tell.”

I leaned over and whispered in her ear before I opened the bedroom door, and we walked out.

The first thing I noticed was that the girl from yesterday was gone. Finn was in the kitchen with Adeline, and they were both only wearing T-shirts and underwear.

Fashion of the day, it seems.

“Where’d the girl go?” I asked, yawning.

Finn shrugged, focused on his cooking. “She was gone when we got up, took some supplies from the pantry.” He grumbled. “And my pistol.”

“Oh well, the food was no issue, but I’m sorry about your gun.”

“Eh, I’ll grab another one back at base. They have plenty to spare, and we did complete the quest,” he said and turned. “Hey, Kill. You like spicy sausage─“

Finn stopped speaking and stared behind me as he pursed his lips. He blinked three times in rapid succession and turned back to me.

I tried to keep my face still, even though I was laughing inside.

“Um, Kill. Who’s your friend?” he asked.

Adeline jerked up and joined in on the conversation. She stared at Death and gave her a once over. “Where the hell did she come from?”

I laughed. “Sorry, guys, I guess I should introduce her. This is Death,” I said nonchalantly.

Finn chuckled. “That’s a cute nickname,” he said to her, while Adeline looked from her to me and back again.

Death glanced at me and winked before turning to Finn. “It’s not a nickname, Finnegan Luca Alejandro Aquilla.”

He froze, the spatula in his hands dropping to clatter to the wood floor, splattering bits of egg across the tile and cabinets. “How do you know my full name?”

Death vanished from my side and reappeared next to Adeline on the table, causing them to jump out of their skin.

“Because, I am Death,“ she said before reaching out a hand and snagging a finger under Adeline’s chin. “Would you like to know the day of your death, Adeline Elizabeth Woods?”

They turned as white as printer paper, and as I caught the devious glint in Death’s eyes, I couldn’t hold back anymore. I fell to the floor and clutched at my sides, laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe.

Death joined in and giggled slightly, dropping her intense gaze on Adeline.

“I’m sorry for my little prank,” she said, with laughter in her eyes.

“I’m not! Serves you bastards right for the mess hall incident,” I said and continued laughing.

“So, is she or is she not Death, as in the actual personification of Death?” Adeline asked, picking up her coffee mug with shaky hands.

Death grinned. “Oh, I am. But I’m not going to hurt you. But as Killian said, turnabout is fair play.”

Finn opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of Jameson whiskey. “Is it too early to start drinking? No? Good,” he said, uncapping the bottle and taking a large swig.

I got off the floor and joined Death and Adeline at the table while Finn cooked and drank in equal measure.

When Finn brought the food over, we ate while I explained to them about Death and how we’d met. They dropped their eyes when Death explained to them that I was supposed to be dead, but that Callisto had saved me.

“So, you’re sleeping together?” Adeline asked.

“Literally, not figuratively.” I thumbed over to Death. “She makes for a surprisingly comfortable body pillow.”

The rest of breakfast passed without any more incident. Finn and Adeline were like me and asked endless questions of Death, and she answered them happily while winding her legs around my own under the table.

I stayed out of the conversation for the most part and just listened. It was nice, and the food Finn made was delicious.

“Hey, Finn, where did you learn to cook?”

“My abuela. Both my parents had to work a lot, so she kept me most days and taught me a lot of authentic Mexican dishes and the basics for a lot of other recipes. And considering my dad’s side of the family, I’m rather partial to Italian too.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Well, keep it up, and I may just promote you to henchman.”

“Eggcellent.” He chuckled and poured a liberal amount of hot sauce on his eggs. He then proceeded to nearly fall over, laughing at his stupid pun.

Adeline shoveled a mouthful of eggs into her mouth before she paused and glanced at Death and then me. Her eyebrows knit together, and she frowned slightly as she swallowed.

“So I have a question,” she said, eying Death.

“You’ve had quite a few already,” Death said with a laugh. “But ask away.”

Adeline paused, her eyes glancing up as if she were thinking how to word her question. After a moment, she huffed and stabbed another bite of egg. “So you’re old, right? Like thousands of years old?”

“I wouldn’t put it quite so bluntly as that.” She nodded. “But yes. I’ve been alive a very long time.”

Adeline nodded and then pointed to me. “So, if you’re that old, wouldn’t that make Killian basically an infant in your eyes?” She shook her head. “That’s more than a little weird.”

Ah.

Her words gave me pause. Adeline brought up a very good question. Though it wasn’t like I hadn’t had the same thought cross my mind before, either.

I guess I just hadn’t wanted to consider the implications of the answer.

Death laughed and shook her head, glancing at me with a warm smile. It immediately put my mind at ease, though the question still hung in the air.

“I can see how you might think that,” Death said as she turned to Adeline. “But no. I don’t consider Killian a child in the slightest. His age doesn’t really matter, nor does mine. At some point, when you’ve lived as long as I have, those kinds of things no longer hold any meaning.”

She paused as Adeline’s eyes narrowed.

“But I can see that my answer isn’t satisfactory enough. While it’s true that I’m several thousands of years old, that doesn’t mean as much as you may think. It gives me wisdom and knowledge…but not necessarily experience. As an Incarnation, my actual interaction with humans has been very limited. I’ve viewed them from afar for most of my existence, which I liken to watching a TV show. It may give me glimpses of human interaction, but watching and experiencing for myself are two very different things.” Death shrugged. “Because of that, you could say that I’m still rather young myself, despite my actual age. Does that answer your question?”

Adeline blinked at her and sighed, shaking her head. “I guess, but this conversation is making my head spin.”

Finn nodded. “Yep. Same.”

I chuckled. “Welcome to how I’ve been feeling the past few days. But don’t worry, it gets easier.”

“It does?” Finn asked.

“No,” I said, smiling.

He chuckled as we turned back to our breakfast and when we were finished, Death had to leave. She bid everyone farewell and kissed me on the cheek before she vanished.

“I’ll see you tonight,” she said and then was gone.

“Alright, spill,” Adeline demanded the second she left.

“Spill what?”

“Everything,” she said and threw up her hands. ”Everything that the two of you left out.”

I took a shot from the whiskey Finn brought over and replied. “We didn’t really leave anything out. I met her after the fight in the Sewers, and she’s been popping up since then.”

“And you’re what? Dating her?” Adeline asked with a raised brow.

I shook my head. “No. I don’t know what we are exactly. She knows me, knew me before all this. How? I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

I shook my head. “She took my memories.”

“She did what?” Adeline shook her head and snagged the bottle of whiskey before knocking it back. “Yeah, that’s not a massive fucking red flag at all.”

Finn shrugged. “She was cute, though.”

Adeline smacked the back of his head.

“What? She was.” He glanced at me. “Dude, you’re being pursued by Death. That’s kind of hardcore,” Finn said with a raised fist, which I had to bump.

It was an obligation.

I sighed and stared down at my empty plate, not sure how to really voice my feelings. I knew objectively that ours was a strange relationship. Even with Death telling me about her life and more history than I could hope to remember, I still didn’t really know her. Yet, I was drawn to her, and I enjoyed being near her, more so than almost anyone in my life thus far.

“I can’t really explain it, but even without my memories, it feels right, like she’s supposed to be in my life.”

“Well, shit. You’re not going to get any grief from me. Love is a hard-won commodity these days, so take it where you can get it,” Finn said.

“Maybe.”

I stood and dropped my dishes in the sink.

I doubt anyone will clean these for a very long time.

With that sobering thought, I went back into the living room.

“I’m going to take a shower, and then the two of you can take one when I’m finished.”

“Why do you get first dibs?” Adeline asked.

“Because I don’t want the two of you to use all the hot water,” I fired back as I went to get clean.

The shower was nice and helped to sort out my thoughts.

I didn’t really know how I felt about Death, but I liked it when she was around.

Though no more games, I want some straight answers from her. If she’s going to be a part of my life, then I’m going to need the whole truth.

I got out of the shower, dried off, and donned my gear.

While Finn and Ade took turns showering, I cleaned and oiled my weapons. Finn had instructed me on how to go about breaking down, disassembling them, and putting them back together, but doing so on memory alone was challenging.

By the time they were done, my guns were clean and assembled, and I’d also loaded all my empty magazines back to full. We had plenty of food, but I wanted to keep up my Well-Fed bonus, so we ransacked the cabin for its supplies.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 3,163 Coins

Food: 10 Day’s Supply

Water: 10 Day’s Supply

Status Effects

[Well-Fed] +10% Constitution!

[Well-Rested] +5% Exp!

Ammo

.38 Special: 25 Rounds

9x19mm: 67 Rounds

5.56x45mm NATO: 370 Rounds

Additional Items

Field Trauma Kit (High Grade): 10/10 Uses

Holy shit. That’s a lot of coins. I guess I haven’t really checked on how many I’ve had for a while now. All the quests and taking the coins from the deserters have put me in a pretty good position.

And as disgusted as I was at the thought of owning anything from those monsters, I needed the coins.

I hadn’t been in the right state of mind yesterday to turn the cabin into a temporary home, but I still had the Well-Rested boost, so I assumed either Finn or Adeline had stepped up for me and bought it, and I was thankful to them for it.

When Finn and Ade finished getting ready, we all headed out. I took one last look at the cabin as I locked it and hid the key.

It was serene, but it held too many memories of people I didn’t know if I would ever see again, and it only stirred emotions I’d rather stayed buried.

“Let’s get the hell out of here.”

Chapter 18- Much Bigger Fish

The weather outside was slowly pushing well past fall and into winter, light snow fell, but it didn’t stick.

“Another few weeks and winter will be in full swing,” I said, mostly to myself.

“Yeah, and New York is going to be even colder than here. You sure that’s the right play? It’s going to be the worst kind of slug match all the way there and a nightmare once we enter the city,” Finn said.

It wasn’t the first time he’d tried to talk me out of the plan, and Finn didn’t strike me as the guy who ran from much, so his attitude was probably the correct one to have.

As we walked through the outskirts of town, I tried to sort through my thoughts, but kept coming back to the same conclusion.

“It’s our best bet to put some levels under us. Both of you lost half of them by joining me, and I’m so far behind the curve it isn’t funny. We need to get stronger, and that isn’t going to happen without taking some risks.”

“Much as I hate to agree, Kill’s right. We’re not just trying to survive anymore. We have higher ambitions now.”

Finn held his hands up and chuckled as we walked. “Alright, I can see I’m not winning this argument. It seems like suicidally reckless is in fashion this season.”

I turned to look at the vast stretches of farmland on either side of us. All the livestock were gone, killed, or captured.

We’re going to need to stock up on supplies for our trip.

“Hey, how many coins do you two have?”

“Over a thousand,” Adeline said.

“A little over twelve hundred,” Finn said. “What about you, Kill?”

“Over three thousand.”

“Holy shit,” Adeline said, turning to me and raising an eyebrow. “How is it you have more coins than both of us already?”

I turned to her. “Do you really need to ask?”

She sighed, shaking her head. “The deserters?”

I nodded.

“Well, hell. Regardless, if we pooled our coins together, we could buy the Humvee straight away,” Finn said.

I nodded. “And we’d be broke. We’re going to need food, water, ammo, and gas. Enough to get us to New York. All of that’s not going to be cheap.”

“We can keep doing quests and save our money up,” Adeline said. “We don’t need to rush things. We can take a few days to make sure we have everything we need.”

I sighed, shaking my head. “That might be the smart thing to do, but it’s not the most efficient route.” I held my hands up. “Especially after what we just had to do.” I glanced at them. “Or do you really think we can just go back to taking small extermination quests like nothing ever happened?”

The whistling wind was their only response.

The air thawed a bit, and the miles-long trip had warmed me up nicely when we entered the city, and most of the snow had stopped falling as we reached Fort Alexander.

As soon as Finn tapped the intercom, the gate rolled back and let us through, and we went straight for Reynolds.

He wasn’t at his work desk, so we tried his office.

Reynolds was leaned back in his office chair, feet propped on his expensive desk, reading a book when we came in.

I didn’t bother with niceties and barged in, plopping down in one of the empty chairs.

Reynolds looked up with a wry smile plastered on his face. “So, you’re alive after all. When you didn’t come back last night, I thought the worst. But I’m glad to see we didn’t lose anyone else.”

“The quest is complete,” I said.

“Obviously, or you wouldn’t be here,” he said, closing his book and leaning up in his chair. “And the deserters?”

“Dead.”

He sighed. “Dammit, you were supposed to bring them back alive. What happened?”

“They were the worst kinds of scum. They’d captured and bound a woman and were taking turns with her.”

“Shit,” he said, hands in front of him, fingers splayed against one another as he worked through something. “That’s…incredibly disturbing. I knew those men. They were good people. Or I thought they were anyway.

“I guess the apocalypse can corrupt even good men, though that doesn’t excuse their behavior.”

Reynolds sighed once more and tapped something in front of his face before motioning toward me.

Trade Request!

250 Apocalypse Coins

“What’s this?”

“A gift. Consider it a bonus for your discretion. I’d like to request that you don’t spread the details of your quest to the others. It would have a serious effect on morale.”

Hush money, eh? Whatever.

I accepted the trade.

“Alright. What’s next?” I asked, propping my leg on my knee.

Reynolds twitched and placed his hands on his desk. He tilted his head to the side. “You want another quest?”

I nodded.

“I assumed you would want to rest after what you’ve been through.”

“Sitting still gains me nothing. And honestly, I’d rather keep working.”

As much as I would like to play it safe and take a few days to rest and try to forget what we’d all gone through, staying holed up in the apartment would only lose me time I could use to level up.

That was the number one priority for me, and it meant that I couldn’t afford to get comfortable.

He nodded. “Okay.” He grabbed a few sheets of paper and spread them out on his desk. “Well, I’ve got a few more monster nests that have been reported─”

“Not good enough. They’re too slow going.” I leaned up to glance at the locations and scoffed. “And like all the rest, these are spread all over the city. Each one would take a full day to complete, and the rewards are shit.”

Reynolds narrowed his eyes, folding his arms as he leaned back in his chair. “They’re important quests. They need to get done.”

“You have men for that. Other mercenaries.” I shook my head. “After our last quest, you can bet your ass I’m ready to get out of this city. Our destination lies elsewhere, and staying here doing small quests isn’t going to cut it anymore.”

He smirked. “Well, most of the monster nests on this side of the city have been cleared out, and the chop shop was the last independent holdout.”

“So, where does that leave us?”

“With one big fucking fish to fry.”

“You can’t be serious.” Finn stepped forward, shaking his head. “The three of us can’t take Salvatore, not by ourselves.”

That name again. He’s the gang leader that’s taken over the mall.

I looked over at Finn, who was arguing with Reynolds.

I mean, he’s probably right about the three of us not being able to take it, but we could if we had help.

“Would it just be the three of us?”

“No,” Reynolds said. “That’s suicide.” He eyed me down. “Honestly, it’s something that I’ve been putting off for weeks. Salvatore’s only getting stronger, and he’ll have an army to oppose us before long. I won’t lie to you. It’s a dangerous as hell mission, and you won’t be going up against monsters but men with guns. But if you’re adamant about not doing the small jobs, then this is what I’ve got to offer you. You do this for me, and I’ll give you the Humvee, with plenty of ammo and gas to spare. Sound good?”

It was a big job, but I couldn’t afford to sit idle or take it slow after the auto shop and Callisto's warnings. I needed to push things and keep pushing if I wanted to hope to catch up to the Archangel.

And as Death said last night, I may have lost a piece of myself, but I’ve gained the resolve I need to do what must be done to achieve my goals.

If it had just been me, I’d have already said yes, but I was part of a team.

I turned around in my chair. “What do you guys say?”

Adeline leaned back against the wall and tapped her thighs with her palms to the beat of an unfamiliar song while she bit her lip, lost in thought. Finn shook his head again.

“It’s risky, but that’s been par for the course with you, Kill. If you think it’s the best move, then I’m in.”

“What he said. And I could definitely use some new threads. So, let’s go shopping,” Adeline said with a chuckle.

Reynolds nodded. “Alright, then I’ll start putting a team together to take the mall. It’ll take some time, so why don’t you three take the day to get organized while I get everything set up?”

As Reynolds finished speaking, a notification flashed in front of me.

Extermination Quest: Shop Till You Drop!

Clear out the Grissom City Mall

Difficulty: Hard

Rewards: 3302 Exp!

2,000 AC!

“Alright, “ I said, waving away the notification. “Let us know when it’s time to go.”

“Of course. Though, a bit of advice. I’d upgrade your equipment. Get some body armor and better guns. It’s long hallways and close quarters in the mall. You might find that rifle you carry a bit unwieldy in such a confined space.”

After he said his piece, he dismissed us with a wave of his hand and went back to reading.

Finn nudged me as we left. “Not bad advice, Hermano. And not like we don’t have the coins to spare.”

“Yeah, but what about our plan of saving?” Adeline said.

I shrugged. “Can’t save if we’re dead. And besides, if we complete the quest, we’ll have more than enough coins to buy the Humvee and then some. I’d rather spend some now to keep us alive. Especially if we’re going up against gunfire.”

And while I love the M4, I wouldn’t mind a different gun, something that suits me a little better.

“Alright,” Adeline said. “Let’s go to the vendors.”

Though, before we could shop, it appeared we had another matter to deal with.

First Sergeant Wise was waiting for us as we shut the door. He looked past us to the captain’s office and then to us. “Walk with me,” he said.

Before we could respond, he turned and walked away. As we caught up to him, he glanced at us and lowered his voice.

“What happened with Jeremy and his men?”

“Uh.” I scratched my cheek. “Captain Reynolds doesn’t want us saying.” I scoffed. “But it’s not like I’ve ever given a damn about keeping my mouth shut.” I glanced over at Wise and sighed. “Killed. They were doing unspeakable things to women, and I couldn’t let them live.”

Wise went pale and stopped walking. A slew of emotions crossed his face, from rage, self-loathing, and disgust. He shook his head, pinching his nose.

“Dammit. Dammit.” He blew out another breath. “I knew they were trouble. Knew for a long time now. They were despicable men. And I knew. I knew what they were capable of, and I should’ve killed them when I had the chance.

“I might’ve prevented a lot of awful deeds.”

I shrugged. “Maybe you could’ve. But they’re dead now. And no one else will ever be hurt by them again. That has to be enough.”

Wise chuckled, but there was no humor in it. “I wish that was true.” He glanced up at us and gave us a somber smile. “Regardless. Thank you. For doing what I couldn’t and for making sure they couldn’t hurt anyone else. You have my gratitude.”

Trade Request!

500 Apocalypse Coins!

“And here.” He reached over and pulled his sidearm from his war belt. He dropped the mag and racked the slide, letting the round in the chamber fall to the floor. Wise handed me the pistol grip first. “This was my brother’s. He was Special Forces. It saw him through some of the worst conflicts in the Middle East.” He grinned. “If you’re going back out there, you’ll need more firepower than that Glock can provide you.”

I took the pistol, not knowing exactly what to say.

It was a lot heavier than the Glock, but it was outfitted with an attached under-barrel laser and suppressor.

Weapon: Heckler & Koch Mark 23

This weapon has been through the meat grinder, seen, and spilled more blood than it ever should have. Lovingly carried and cared for by the original owner and the previous one. It’s rugged, reliable, and will probably outlast you by at least a few years.

Damage: 50-60 (Ballistic)

Ammo: .45 ACP

Condition: Well-Kept (2% Firearm Failure, +10% Damage)

“Thank you, Wise.”

He nodded. “I hope it helps. I truly do.”

With that, he nodded and walked away, leaving the three of us standing in the middle of the base.

I turned to the others and stored the pistol in my pocket, promising to head to the vendor and purchase a proper holster.

Finn clapped me on the back. “He must like you. The First Sergeant loved that pistol.” Finn thumbed over to the vendor.

We headed back to the armory. Two different guards stood at the entrance and once more verified that we had access before they let us in.

“Oh, and you can trade your guns and ammo into the vendor or the armory. The armory will give you a little better price, but it’s your choice,” Finn said.

I’ll do that after I decide if I want to change my weapon.

I went over to the vendor and touched the screen before browsing through its many options for guns.

The first place I went was rifles, but nothing seemed to be exceedingly better than my M4, and the ones that were cost a fortune.

Okay, what about shotguns? I shook my head. No, not my style, and I’d be useless at long range.

Then I found a group that made me smile.

Submachine guns. That might work.

The list went on and on, detailing dozens of the guns, but I stopped on one and selected it.

Weapon: Heckler & Koch UMP45

Almost as iconic as they come. Popular with Special Forces in real life and run and gunners in video games. Though this game isn’t a game, and if you try to run and gun, you’ll likely end up with several new holes in your body.

But by all means, try. It’ll be funny to watch.

Ammo: .45 ACP

Condition: New (2% Firearm Failure)

Cost: 175 Coins

The same manufacturer as the pistol Wise gave me. If that isn’t a sign, I don’t know what is. And I’ve always wanted to shoot one before. It’s versatile, but I’ll probably need to buy some attachments for it.

For an additional fee, of course.

By the time I was done, I’d purchased a suppressor, reflex sight, and a vertical foregrip with an attached high lumen flashlight. Which cost me another hundred coins, but I was happy with it. I also went ahead and bought three hundred rounds of ammunition and magazines, totaling another forty coins.

All in all, I’d spent three hundred and fifteen coins, and that was before I purchased armor.

Okay, maybe this spending spree was a bad idea after all.

When I got to the armor section, I paused and had to consider spending even more money. Though it seemed even the vendors wanted me to look like a villain reject, because the black leather coat was the most stylish option available.

Armor: Leather Long Coat

A leather duster. In the apocalypse? You sure aren’t trying to resist stereotypes, are you?

Resistant to Ballistic, Clawing, Slashing, and Piercing damage. Does nothing for Blunt or Magical damage. Though at least you’ll look cool as you get your face smashed in. So, there’s that.

Rating: Level IIIA

Cost: 100 Coins

I mean, playing Fashion Souls during the apocalypse is way down on my list of priorities, but I refuse to wear the denim or that cringe-worthy fleece jacket imitation.

With a sigh at my dwindling coins, I also had to buy one more piece of armor.

Armor: Kevlar Vest

Ah, yes. The ever-iconic bulletproof vest, which it isn’t in the slightest. It’s bullet-resistant. But bullet-resistant vest just doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it?

Resistant to Ballistic damage, duh. Slightly resistant to Piercing and Slashing damage. Not so much Magical or Blunt. It might keep you alive, unless someone takes a shot at that big ass head of yours.

Rating: Level IIIA

Cost: 100 Coins

Ignoring the text, I bought it, considering we’re about to go up against men with guns. I'd rather pay the extra money to keep myself alive.

I paid for my items and quickly got dressed. The added weight from the vest and the coat were surprising, but I barely noticed it with my increased Strength.

And since I kept getting minor scrapes and cuts, I went to the medical section and purchased some medical grade gauze and tape. It came in packs of five for ten coins, so I bought them so I wouldn’t have to use my trauma kit for such minor injuries.

When I finished my shopping, I turned in my M4, Glock, revolver, and all the ammo for each to the armory, receiving three hundred coins back, so I felt a little better about spending so much.

By the time I’d finished, the others were nearing the end of their shopping sprees.

Finn finished first, and he walked over, decked out in similar tactical gear to what he used when I first met him, but it was all black rather than green and bore no identification.

“I see you got some armor too, smart.” He nodded at my gun and smiled. “Good choice. H&K is a personal favorite. So that makes you our go-between. I’m up close, and Adeline said she was thinking about going long range. Though I know she’s going to hate giving up her shotgun.”

I laughed and slid my SMG over my shoulder. “Yeah, she loves that thing.” I looked down at Finn’s newest gun. “Though it looks like you took over the role of shotgunner.”

Finn hoisted his shotgun proudly. “Sure did. The Benelli M4. A fucking powerhouse.” He slung a shotgun belt over his forearm. As he spoke, he loaded it. When he finished, he turned the gun over, grabbed one more shell, and then pulled the bolt back about two-thirds of the way and shoved the shell in before letting it go.

“What’d you just do?” I asked.

Finn grinned. “Ghost loaded a shell. Gives me another round, which in a firefight might make all the difference. I bought a mix of buckshot and slug shells, so I’m prepared for whatever comes our way.”

A lightbulb went off over my head. “That reminds me, you mentioned special ammo for suppressors. I bought a bunch of .45 ammo, but I didn’t see any that said for use with suppressors.”

He laughed deeply at that, his face turning red as he doubled over. “We need to give you a crash course on firearms, Hermano. .45 ACP rounds are inherently subsonic. But they’re still going to be loud, especially indoors. So, don’t expect us to be any kind of covert once the bullets start flying.”

“Good to know.” I blushed, somewhat admonished by my lack of knowledge.

He’s right. I need to brush up on my gun lingo, but I can’t help but feel like they’re losing their effectiveness. Bullets didn’t even phase those Midnight Beasts.

We both leaned against the wall and waited for Adeline to finish her purchases, which took another twenty minutes. By the time she was done, I was starving.

“Look at what I bought,” she said, holding up her new rifle.

It was blocky, tan, and the name for it was on the tip of my tongue.

“Is that a SCAR?”

“Not just a SCAR, that’s the FN-SCAR-H, chambered for 7.62 NATO rounds and designed for medium to long-range engagements. With Ade providing support with her rifle and magic and me and you on the front lines dealing damage, we’ve got a badass team.”

Ade and I laughed at the excitement in Finn’s voice. “Chill out with the gun porn, Finn,” she said.  “Let’s get some food. I’m ravenous.”

The three of us headed up to the mess hall and once more piled our plates high with food. Though Adeline paused mid-bite and set her fork down.

“There’s the elephant in the room we need to discuss,” she said around a mouthful of stroganoff.

“Being what exactly?” I asked.

“Our classes.”

She’s not wrong about that. We haven’t used our skills in front of others so far. Anyone still alive, at any rate.

“You’re right. I didn’t think about that, but if we use our abilities out in the open, it’ll raise some difficult questions.”

Finn picked at his food, not really eating, and looked lost in thought. I nudged him with my toe. ”What do you think?”

“Well…there’s no way around us using our classes. We’ll have to just to survive, but that doesn’t mean we have to explain anything to anyone. Ade and I can hide our true classes well enough, but the moment you go into demon mode, everyone will know you’re different.”

“Fuck it. I say we do the job and don’t say anything. Soon as it’s over, we can get our reward and leave,” Ade said.

“Yeah, because everything has worked out so smoothly for us in the past.” I shrugged and took another bite of food. “It’s an issue, but sitting here spinning our wheels on it gets us nowhere. We’ll burn that bridge if and when we get to it.”

There wasn’t a way around using our skills, so trying to figure out how people were going to react and then plan for that without any of it happening was going to get us nowhere but exhausted.

There was just no way we could predict how things would play out, and trying was an exercise in futility.

When we finished, we all went back to our separate rooms to wait until everyone was geared up.

“Killian!” someone hissed right next to my ear.

I bolted up. “What? What’s going on?”

“Well, I’ve been trying to wake you for two minutes now, but you were deep asleep,” she said and then shifted her eyes, smiling. “She’s adorable when she’s sleeping.”

I turned over to find Death fast asleep, holding onto me.

When did she get here?

Though Adeline was right, she was quite cute as she slept. I unlatched myself as gently as I could and climbed into my clothes.

“Time?” I asked as I grabbed my submachine gun.

“It’s almost one-thirty. Everyone is gearing up as we speak.”

She turned and left the room, and I followed right behind her, shutting the door behind me as I hastily donned my shirt, Kevlar vest, and coat.

My duster barely fit over the added gear and wouldn’t button all the way, but it was warm enough and helped as we stepped into the frostbitten early morning. Snow littered the ground, and the air was still, bringing the clean scent of winter with it.

Fog appeared in front of my face, and I resisted the urge to shiver as I followed the others to the vehicle depot.

It was five miles or so to the mall, so it seemed we were taking vehicles as two large, armored behemoths stood waiting when I arrived. They were big and bulky, all uneven lines that ended in a wedge.

“What are those?” I asked a random soldier passing by.

“APC. Armored personal carrier. They’ll ferry us to and from the mall,” he said, already walking away.

I counted the troops and looked back at the vehicles, wondering how the hell we were all going to fit. I highly doubted comfortably would be the answer.

As I glanced around, I realized Adeline had vanished. I looked for her for a minute, but when I didn’t immediately see her, I turned back to checking over my weapons and gear.

This wasn’t going to be an easy quest, so I wanted to double- and triple-check that everything was in order before we left. When that was done, there was nothing else to do other than stand around. I loaded up as many spare magazines as I could and chambered a round in my SMG before I flicked the safety on.

After I’d finished, I started searching for Finn and Adeline.

They were behind one of the buildings. I only spotted them because a breeze blew through, and some of Adeline’s blue hair stood out.

I was about to walk over to them, but they clung to each other, kissing.

About damn time.

A grin tugged at my lips, and I turned away, giving them their privacy. I stood out of the way, but as a bitter wind tore at my exposed face, I cursed and desperately wished I’d made some coffee.

“Here,” a voice said.

I turned and found First Sergeant Wise next to me with a tray of steaming coffee mugs in his hands.

“Are you a mind reader?” I asked, taking one of the proffered mugs.

“Nope. But a stiff cup of joe always perks me up, especially in the winter. Figured since my men were already geared up, I’d make some coffee…so I had to make sure there was enough for the whole class.”

I laughed and took a sip. It was pure black coffee, which wasn’t my favorite, but it was still coffee, and it was warm, so it was perfect.

“Thanks. Are you coming with us?” I asked.

He shook his head. “No. That responsibility lies with Staff Sergeant Moore. He’ll be leading this mission.” Wise shook his head. “A bit taciturn, but he’s good at what he does.” Wise turned around and took a step. “I better hand out the rest of these before everyone freezes solid. Good luck, Killian.”

“Appreciate it.” I nodded and held up my cup. “Thanks for the coffee.”

As he left, I leaned against one of the support beams and sipped my coffee as everyone got ready.

Ten minutes later, the two squads we’d be going with strolled out decked in full combat gear and looking like the badasses they were.

It made me feel better about going up against such a sizable force.

The APC started with a thunderous rumble, and the back hatch opened, and we all piled in.

A thick man with a graying buzz cut pointed at us as we entered.

“Alright, for you newcomers, I’m Staff Sergeant David Moore, and I’m the man in charge of you. You may be mercs, but during this mission, I’m in command. Is that clear?”

“Yes, sir,” I said.

“Staff Sergeant. None of that sir bullshit,” he said, scowling at me.

“Yes, Staff Sergeant.”

Finn looked over and snickered at me, while Adeline looked like she wanted to burst out laughing.

“So, what’s the plan?”

“The plan, Merc, is for you to stay back and let the professionals handle it, and try not to shoot us in the back by mistake. The mall has too many entrances and exits to cover them all. We scout out the area and make an assessment, then we go in, kick ass, and go home.”

I didn’t say anything else and tried to figure out a game plan for the three of us.

The Army is going to go in loud, try to hit them hard and fast.

We could join in and back them up. But three extra guns will be of middling use. It might be best to see if we can hit them from a different angle, flank them, and catch them by surprise.

It bore some thought, but I wouldn’t know until we arrived. Too many things could go wrong, and a complex battle plan would fall apart as soon as we engaged the enemy. Better to be flexible and adapt on the go.

It took us nearly twenty minutes to go five miles, but we eventually arrived at our location.

As the APC stopped and the hatch opened, we fled from the cramped and hot quarters to the bitter cold and biting wind, and I didn’t know which one I preferred less.

The first thing I noticed was that we weren’t at the mall. We were still a few blocks away, which was a smart call as rolling up in a loud armored vehicle most certainly wasn’t my definition of covert.

After everyone filed out, the men and women next to us checked their weapons, and we marched as quietly as we could to the mall’s parking lot.

Several Charade Beasts were prowling around the rooftops, but a few well-placed suppressed rounds from a pistol sent their carcasses careening to the pavement to splatter their colorful blood on the concrete.

“Fuckin’ hate those things,” a soldier in front of me said, the one who’d fired.

“Nice shot,” I said.

The woman turned back and flashed me a grin, along with her thanks. From then on, we didn’t run into any more of Callisto’s minions, and we reached the mall without incident.

We didn’t head to the mall itself, but rather the large three-story parking garage next to it. It was the best option to give us a good overview of the mall and let us plan our entrance.

The garage is a good vantage point, but wouldn’t that mean it’s guard─I was in the process of thinking when there was a shout of surprise and the muffled thumps of automatic fire.

“Two down,” came a voice inside.

Guess so.

The wind picked up, and the constant howling should’ve masked the gunshots, but I kept my ears tuned to see if I could pick up anything over the bracing gusts.

The soldiers swept through the garage like well-oiled machines and made us look like complete amateurs in comparison.

Finn and Ade were about to head in when I stopped them.

“What?” they both said in unison.

“Let’s leave the soldiers to their work. They don’t want us there, and honestly, if we tried, we’d likely just get in the way.” I held up my hand as Finn opened his mouth. “Adeline and myself, that is. We’re not trained soldiers, and they have their set way of doing things.

“Let them. I say we head in and fuck some shit up our own way.”

“You know I’m down,” Adeline said.

“Hell, can’t argue with our fearless leader after a speech like that. What’s our play?”

I motioned for them to follow me and led them around to the service elevator in the garage. “There’s a maintenance tunnel leading from the garage to the mall. We go in from below, and they’ll never see us coming.”

They gave me wide smiles and nodded.

“Alright, let’s do this!”

Chapter 19- Assault on Grissom Mall

The plan was simple enough, but executing it was a different matter altogether. For starters, getting down into the maintenance tunnel would be a bitch and a half. The elevator wouldn’t take us that far down without a key, which we didn’t have.

I made sure we were alone and then shifted into Demon Form to pry open the elevator doors. The elevator itself was a floor above us which saved us the trouble of removing it. Our goal was just below us, though it was a bigger drop than I was thinking.

Not afraid of heights, no. I’m the Demon Lord, and the Demon Lord can’t be frightened by a ten-foot drop.

“I’ll jump down first and catch you guys,” I said, and without the chance to chicken out, jumped.

It was over in a second, and I hit the ground with an echoing thud that quickly faded into oblivion before it carried down the tunnel.

I looked up and held my hands out. “Alright, jump.”

Adeline did so without hesitation and barreled off the ledge and into my arms with a wild smirk. I braced and cushioned her against my chest as she fell into me and stumbled when a hundred and twelve pounds of woman knocked the breath from me.

I chuckled as I set her down. “There’s a joke about you falling for me in there somewhere.”

She laughed and leaned up to flick my horns. “Sorry, the whole gloom lord look doesn’t do it for me.”

“With how many punk band T-shirts you own? I find that hard to believe.”

She snorted and laughed. Adeline was about to respond when she looked up and stepped to the side. Finn jumped without warning and didn’t even bother to try and let me catch him, preferring to show off and potentially get himself hurt. He landed on the balls of his feet and absorbed the impact as well as he could, but still winced as he came out of his crouch.

“Oof, going to feel that in my knees tomorrow.”

“Shouldn’t have tried to look tough in front of your girlfriend,” I said with a smile.

“Yeah, yeah,” he replied, and slugged me gently on the arm. “Though you can’t tell me you wouldn’t have done the same if Death was watching.”

“I’m not dating Death.“ I walked over to the metal doorway in a recessed alcove in front of us; along the wall was a switch, and when I flicked it, a red light buzzed to life just above us and bathed the entire tunnel in a soft glow. “And even if I was, she’s Death. I’m fairly certain her idea of impressive isn’t anything a mortal can accomplish.”

He tilted his head and shrugged. “That’s probably true, though you must be doing something right to get her to stick around.”

“She just likes using him as a pillow,” Adeline quipped with a throaty chuckle.

The two of them shared a laugh at my expense while I tried to open the door, but of course, it was locked. I pried it open with my claws and stepped through while Finn whispered to Adeline behind me.

I didn’t know what awaited us beyond the tunnels, so I wanted us to be prepared for anything. I shifted out of my Demon Form so that the cooldown timer would hurry up.

“Guys, time to get our game faces on.”

Weapons out, we proceeded down the cramped tunnel. It was all thick concrete and rebar, but nothing leaked, and there wasn’t any dampness in the air, so it was already a marked improvement from being outside in the cold. There were a few more red lights, which did little but cast shadows over the walls, but we could at least see where we were going.

We continued through the tunnels for a while until Adeline spoke up.

“Why didn’t we tell the soldiers about this?”

I looked back at her. “Because, they wouldn’t have listened. Moore doesn’t want us here. We were nothing but baggage to him, and no way would he have taken my advice.”

Finn nodded. “Kill’s right. Moore’s kind of a prick. And he’s really not a fan of mercenaries, so I doubt he’d have paid us any mind.”

“Which is why we’re doing things our way. I wasn’t about to take orders from someone who doesn’t respect me,” I said as we pressed on.

We passed several locked rooms and passageways to other sections and maintenance chambers, but I knew the correct pathway if memory served me and took a left.

Something that didn’t go unnoticed.

“Hey, Kill. How do you know which way to go?” Finn asked.

“My dad used to be a contractor. He worked for the company that built the mall. When Mom was working at the lab, we couldn’t be left alone during the summer, so Meghan and I would come to work with Dad. There’s a break room around here where we were told to stay, but of course, we didn’t.”

“Little Killian, running around making trouble,” Adeline smirked at the thought. “Why does that not surprise me?”

“Yeah, I used to be a lot of fun, then I picked up gaming, and there went my social life.”

It only took us a few brief minutes to traverse through the tunnels and reach the door that would lead to the mall's basement.

We’ve almost certainly beaten the Army here. They’re probably still scouting things out. What to do?

I turned to Finn. “What do you think? Stay and wait for the fireworks, or kick them off ourselves?”

“Moore knows by now that we left, so if they hear gunfire, they’ll rush in and join us. We can take bullets better than they can, so it might be better for us to do the heavy lifting.”

“Adeline?”

She shrugged and leaned against the wall. “Doesn’t much matter to me. We might get killed either way, but personally, I’d rather we go in and snag some experience points for ourselves rather than letting the soldiers hoard them all.”

Not a bad point, but it’s not monsters and abominations we’re going up against here.

It’s people: flesh and blood humans.

It was something I’d prepared to deal with and had accepted. But I hadn’t once asked them if they were okay with it.

That was a failure on my part. Just because I’d resolved myself to doing whatever it took didn’t automatically carry over to them. This was something they had to decide on their own. I couldn’t ask them to go up and start slaughtering people if they didn’t want to.

Should have had this conversation much earlier, but better late than never.

“Hold up a sec, guys. I should have said something about this sooner. But we’re not up against Callisto’s pets here. It’s people. Can you do this?”

Finn sighed and scratched his head. “Not the first time, Hermano…I’m good.”

“And what about you?” I asked, turning to Ade.

She looked away quickly, her chest rising and falling quickly. “I’m not going to let you two take the burden on yourselves without helping. Besides, we’ve already seen that some humans deserve to die.”

I walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder and went to speak, but no words came. There wasn’t anything I could say that would change the fact that we were about to kill people.

Finn smiled as he glanced at me. “No worries. Let’s just have each other’s backs. Drinks are on me when we get back to base!”

I smiled.

We’re probably going to need them.

The walk through the tunnels had taken just over fifteen minutes, and I had about that long until I could use Demon Form again.

Let’s hope things are quiet till then.

The three of us stared at each other and, with a nod, slipped inside the mall.

Out of nowhere, a notification jolted in front of me.

Grissom Mall: Base

Fortification Level: 7

Threat Level: 5

Safe Zone: Active

Good to know this place is secure, at least. Means we don’t have to deal with any of Callisto’s pets.

It was pitch-black in the basement, but the air was still, almost stale, as if the room hadn’t been disturbed in some time. That ineffable quality told me that we were alone.

Someone didn’t check the mall over. Sloppy work or maybe they just don’t have the manpower to cover everywhere. Either works in our favor.

“Can someone get the lights?” Adeline asked.

“Not unless you want hostiles crawling over our asses,” Finn whispered back.

As quiet as church mice, we crept along until we came to the stairs that led to the heart of the mall.

It had been a year or so since I’d last been in the mall itself and too many years since I’d been in the tunnels. I had no idea as to where the stairs led to. We could get lucky and end up close to a location to hide in, or we could walk into the center of the mall and be surrounded.

Well, sitting here doing nothing isn’t going to do us any good.

“Stealth first, only fire if we have no other choice.”

I opened the door a crack and peered out. We’d gotten lucky, and we were off the main strip, in one of the corners, with a defunct video and electronics store that sold overpriced DVDs and anime memorabilia.

There was no one around, so I stepped out with a motion for the others to follow me, and we entered the store. The employee's only section was past cheap plastic shelves full of movies and a cardboard cutout of some blond-haired battle academy hero with a cybernetic eye and arm, and I made a beeline for it.

The room was small with half-finished drywall, spackle spots over the nails left unpainted, and no tiles on the ceiling. But it was perfect because it led to the employee hallway and connected this half of the stores together. We could move about unseen if we didn’t run into any patrolling guards.

“What’s the play, Kill?”

I sighed, knowing what we had to do. I’d accepted it, but that didn’t mean I liked it.

It’s not what I want, but I don’t really have a choice here. And besides, they’re just as bad as the men I killed, maybe worse. Reynolds said the gang leader was ruthless, but am I okay with trading human lives for experience points?

Because that’s what this is boiling down to.

It was what it was always going to come down to, though. I needed to get stronger, and this was how I had to do it.

“There’s too many to take alive, so we drop them one by one as quietly as we can.”

I chose to participate in this mission and had to follow through with it, no matter what or who stood in the way. So, with that in my mind, I steeled myself, and we left the store.

The hallway was well lit, with multiple fluorescent lights overhead across the mostly clean white tile and walls. Someone had been cleaning, but not to a professional degree.

Surprising, I’d think a gang of killers would have better things to do.

Towards the end of the hallway was a door that led out into side hallway bathrooms, and beside it was the entrance to a lingerie shop. We were still at the “back” of the mall, but I was still surprised we hadn’t run into anyone yet.

The only other shops in this section were a shoe store and video game outlet, but still, it was beyond an oversight to leave this place unguarded.

We stuck to the sides and employee hallways as much as possible, but after passing four or five more stores without seeing a single person, I was beginning to get twitchy.

Ahead of us was a crossroads that led to other sections of the mall. As we reached it, we all crouched down, and I peeked around the corner.

I paled as a wave of fear settled in my gut and the sharp clack of nails on tile sent shivers up my spine.

Guess I found out why this section of the mall isn’t guarded.

Around the corner were nearly a dozen Carnival Beasts. Each of the reptilian monsters a different color of the rainbow. They meandered around the large fountain that spewed water over a concrete depiction of an angel. The beasts lapped at the water resting on the floor.

Why the hell are they here?

I activated inspect and got a good look at them.

Monster (Mid-Tier): Carnival Beast (Controlled)

Health: 250/250

Exp: 102

AC: 25

Controlled? What the hell? Is there a class that lets you tame monsters?

I motioned behind me to Finn and Ade and waved at them to look. They froze up and slowly brought their heads back, holding in their breaths.

Even after our multiple excursions through the city, we were rightfully cautious of the beasts.

We need to go around them. I’d rather not go through that many of them at once.

I pulled back, but my shoe squeaked against the tile, and I cursed as one of them turned to the sound.

“So much for stealth.”

I flipped the safety switch on my SMG to full auto and raised it. I pressed the trigger once, and a quick burst later, the entire head of the beast exploded in a rush of bright gore.

“Alright, guess we’re doing this the hard way!”

Adeline barreled around the corner and unleashed a few rounds from her rifle before one-handing it and casting a few crimson fireballs. They stuck to two of the beasts and engulfed them in hellfire.

Finn rushed in with his shotgun as I aimed at another beast.

They were quick, but we’d surprised them, and they were sluggish to respond. That split-second advantage is what saved us from getting swarmed.

The recoil thrummed through my shoulder as I burned through nearly all of my magazine, killing a few of the creatures. I had to keep a careful eye on my line of fire as Finn fired shell after shell into the beasts. I focused on another one and fired.

Blood splashed in an arc from its skull as it dropped to the ground.

Movement to my right drew my gaze to one that had slipped around Finn and rushed me.

It was fast, and it leapt over the carcasses of the other beasts and opened its mouth wide, ready to tear into me.

As I brought my gun to bear, it jammed.

Shit.

I dropped it, bringing my hand up as I activated my newest skill, Rend.

My fingers burned hot enough that I thought blisters would form. Muscle memory took over for me, and I lashed out with a swipe. Five razor-sharp blades of obsidian coalesced just above my fingers and flew forward and struck home across the flank of the Carnival Beast.

The crescent arcs of darkness carved bloody grooves deep into its flesh, slicing through muscle and bone as if it were cardboard.

The beast fell to pieces in midair, sending a torrent of filth splattering across the once white tile.

“Holy hell!” Finn shouted. “Nice!”

Several more of the controlled creatures howled and ran at us.

Finn let loose with his shotgun and killed more while Adeline aimed at the final one.

The crack of Adeline’s rifle split the air as one of the charging beast's head burst apart. The bloody body skidded to a stop and began leaking out its bright blood. Thankfully, my clothes were spared the worst of the incoming spray.

With that final one, the Carnival Beasts were dead.

Adeline held out a fist, and I bumped it.

“Damn excellent shot.”

“I know.” She smirked.

Combat Results!

5 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 510

Experience Boost (20%): 102 Exp!

Total Gain: 612 Exp!

AC Earned: 125!

Level Up!

Alright. With the exp boost, I basically scored a free kill. Not bad.

As soon as the last echo of the dying beast and gunfire faded, I knelt, snagging my submachine gun and wiping a smear of blood from the stock before I cleared the jam and reloaded.

The three of us swept the area, making sure we were alone. When it was certain we weren’t going to be attacked again, we threw ourselves into a nearby sports store.

We stayed where we were and listened, our guns poised at the entrance as we waited for a response to our brief firefight.

“I don’t hear anything,” Finn whispered.

“Me either, which worries me. That was anything but quiet.” I glanced back at them and nodded. “But sitting here isn’t getting us anywhere either. Let’s check our Mantles, and then we keep pushing on.”

I pulled up mine.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 450/450 (495)

Mana: 500/500

Stamina: 300/350

Level: 12

Exp: 271/1393

15 Stat Points Available!

That was over six hundred points just from that quick fight, but they were different from the ones we’ve previously fought. The others were low-tier, and they weren’t being controlled.

It stood to reason that there might be more of the beasts prowling the halls, which meant that finding and taking out the puppet master was priority one.

I bet the beasts under their control will go haywire if their master is defeated.

While we were here, I went ahead and assigned my stat points.

After seeing how powerful Rend was, I wanted to make sure I could keep using it. Five points went into Endurance to bring it up to twenty-five. I did the same with Perception because it was so low, and I didn’t want to walk headfirst into the bullet that killed me. And lastly, I added five to Charisma.

Stat Page

Strength: 35

Constitution: 25

Perception: 25

Endurance: 25

Agility: 30

Wisdom: 30

Charisma: 35

As I hit select, an itch tingled over my skin that started on my face and quickly spread over my entire body. But as soon as it appeared, it faded and left me slightly weary and invigorated at the same time.

“You guys ready to move?” I asked, glancing back.

Adeline nodded before her eyes widened. “What the hell, Killian?”

I paused. “What?”

Finn turned and reacted much the same way as Adeline. “Dude. Your skin.”

I glanced down, not really seeing whatever they were. “What about it?”

“It’s so smooth,” Adeline said. “Not that you had bad skin before, but holy hell, I want whatever you just did.”

I snorted as I realized what must have happened. “I just raised my Charisma, and I guess I must have hit a threshold.”

Adeline grinned. “Well, c’mon, pretty boy. Let’s get this quest over with.”

“Let’s,” I said as we set out.

Our progress through the mall was slower now that we knew what could lurk in the shadows or inside the outlet windows.

The echoes of our footfalls sounded off the walls and announced our presence, but there wasn’t much we could do about it. The gunfight had shattered any attempt at stealth we had.

I glanced at the floors above us, checking for anyone hiding, but I found nothing but quiet, empty shops and darkened glass banisters.

I don’t like this. We made more than enough noise. Someone should have come running.

Why do I feel like we’re walking into a trap?

I stopped as a phantom brush tickled the back of my neck. Light shifted from above me. Before I could question it, I spun around and opened fire as a monster leapt at me.

It was another Charade Beast, but it was pale white, with silver spines down its back. It opened its wide jaws as it dropped.

I held down my trigger as it landed on me, and my bullets thudded against its flesh and eventually tore through. Blood leaked from numerous wounds as my gun clicked empty, and the beast stopped moving. I shoved it off me. Its warm and sticky blood coated a heavy splotch down my chest.

The carcass rolled off me, and Adeline leaned down to offer me a hand.

“Thanks,” I said as she hauled me up.

A round of stilted applause caused the three of us to turn.

In the small courtyard in front of us, right where the escalators and elevators led to the upper floors, was a man in a tight tank top and jeans sitting on the black glass rail of the second floor.

He was tall and thin, but well-muscled. His thick brown hair was pulled back and tied in a complicated knot at the crown of his head that left his sharp features in full view.

I didn’t like him. His jaded blue eyes and smug grin set my teeth on edge.

The man scratched at his knee through the torn hole in his blue jeans and smiled at us.

“Quick reflexes there, not bad.”

I didn’t let him get another word out before I raised my gun and fired, only for the click of an empty magazine to sound through the hall.

“Someone was too trigger-happy.” His smile deepened as he laughed at me with his callous eyes.

“Yeah, well, I’ve got plenty, asshole,” Adeline said from beside me, leveling her rifle at the man.

Finn stowed his shotgun over his shoulder and drew his pistol. “Might want to wipe that smile off your face. You’re outnumbered.”

His cocky attitude never wavered as he stared down the barrels of two guns. “Am I, though?” He whistled.

From out of the shops overhead, several dozen Carnival Beasts appeared from all angles. The ones above us dropped to the ground and quickly surrounded us.

Finn quickly drew his shotgun.

I hastily reloaded, and we all huddled together as the monsters inched closer.

“Son of a bitch,” I whispered. “Adeline, Conflagration, you’ve got the mana to cast it more than once, yeah?”

“I can only have one active at a time, though.”

There goes that idea.

I was hoping to limit their avenues of attack, but it would be next to useless if we only could use it once.

“Anyone have any bright ideas?” she asked.

“Not die?” Finn deadpanned.

“Brilliant. I hope your smartass remark isn’t going to be the last thing you say,” Adeline snapped.

I chuckled despite the fear in my chest at the many, many monsters inching closer to us. “I don’t know. Finn might have the right idea. I hope my last words really piss off whoever it is that kills me. But I refuse to let us be killed by a glorified puppeteer.

“Keep moving and give them hell. Let’s carve a path and try to put some distance between them and us.”

Both nodded, and I began looking for an opening. Most of the beasts converged in front of us, forming a barrier between their master and us, but there weren’t many behind us. Retreat would be our best option.

“Blast there, Ade!” I pointed to a spot where three Charade Beasts were approaching.

She didn’t hesitate, and a brilliant ring of crimson fire lit up the mall and engulfed the three helpless Charade Beasts, turning them to ash in seconds.

“Alright now, in front of us!” I shouted.

Adeline threw up another one where most of the beasts were and blocked our view of the tamer in the process.

“Run!”

The three of us turned and ran as too many nails clinked on tile, chasing after us. I flipped my SMG to a three-round burst and fired indiscriminately behind me. Several high-pitched screams of pain rang painfully in my ears behind me, telling me that I’d at least wounded a few of them.

We put some distance between us and ran to the crossroad, back to the narrow hallway between the bathrooms. It was liable to be the best place to make a final stand as any.

I skidded to a stop and leaned against the large vending machines as I reloaded one more while Ade and Finn kept their eyes on where we came from.

The howling grew closer.

“Plan?” Finn asked.

“Stop them from swarming us. In this narrow hallway, they only have one way to attack us.”

He smiled. “I’ve got an idea.”

Finn walked over to the vending machines and activated his Abyssal Armor. It formed around his skin and solidified into heavy plate mail. He walked over to the large machines and pushed them like they weighed a third of what they should.

In five seconds, he’d positioned them side by side in the hallway, creating a stopgap that the monsters would have to go around or through Finn to reach us.

“How long can you hold the armor?”

“About ten minutes, or until I soak up too much damage, but as we found when Ade set me on fire, it can happen quicker than we’d like.”

Not good.

“Okay, same plan as the warehouse. You play tank and keep their attention, and Ade and I will stop them from swarming you.”

He gave me a thumbs up. “Get your game faces on. They’re here.”

Finn raised his shotgun and fired as fast as he could. He blasted nine shells in ten seconds before he dropped the gun and drew his pistol. However, he couldn’t keep up the rate of fire as too many had reached him. He pulled back into the gap of the vending machines.

Two of the Carnival Beasts climbed on top of them, and Adeline and I opened fire. My shot took a green-colored one in the neck and jaw, shredding its face. It teetered before toppling over and falling into the mass of creatures.

Adeline dropped hers just as another climbed over the edge.

Finn fired round after round into the beasts, but he quickly ran dry, and they massed around him, biting and clawing at his armor, ripping minuscule grooves into the metal.

“Finn, pull back, let a few through!”

As he stepped back, I stowed my SMG and raised my hands as half a dozen of them crammed into the tight space between the vending machines.

Which had formed a neat kill zone.

I raised my hands, activating Rend as I brought them up.

Ten wicked blades sailed from my fingers and into the mass of bodies. One Carnival Beast broke through the line, only to be met by a horde of deadly obsidian.

As soon as Rend carved a bloody swath through them, I grabbed my gun and fired a string of bullets at the opening, peppering half a dozen of them with lead. Blood spurted in heavy streams, coating the sides of the vending machines.

When my SMG ran dry, Ade switched off and unleashed hell with her rifle. The two of us quickly clogged the gap with bodies and gave Finn a chance to grab his shotgun and reload while we fended them off.

We held as the mass of creatures swarmed over the dead to get to us, but they were on shaky ground, and one of the carcasses rolled when one of the beasts landed on it, sending it toppling into a group of others.

Adeline stepped up and cast Conflagration, burning them to cinders in the blink of an eye.

With that, we had a second to breathe, and I ordered her to cast one more spell at the entrance, where a tall pile of bodies resided, blocking our exit. Her fire magic reduced the entire lot to a pile of ash.

The entire area stunk of burnt flesh, and the too-sweet stench of monster blood and all the ash clung to the back of my throat, and I resisted the urge to cough as the last of the Carnival Beasts approached us.

As the ones in front held our attention, there was a heavy crack from beside us. I turned just as the drywall splintered and exploded in a cloud as two Carnival Beasts broke through and leapt at us, their fangs bared.

Holy shit!

I stepped forward and brought my hands up, using Rend to tear them to pieces. It was so much more effective than our bullets had been, and I wanted to save my ammo for Salvatore’s gang.

When they fell to the ground in chunks, I breathed a sigh of relief as Finn and Adeline took care of the ones in front of us.

An ocean of yellow leaked through the carnage in front of us as the echoes of our gunfire subsided, and we sagged to the floor.

Combat Results!

8 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 816 Exp!

Experience Boost (22.5%): 184 Exp!

Total Gain: 1000 Exp!

AC Earned: 200!

My entire body shook with adrenaline, and ash and sweat stuck to my skin, and I fought to keep from stopping and collapsing from fatigue.

Used a good bit of my stamina. Guess this is one of the side effects.

“Holy shit, that was rough,” Finn said as he leaned back against the wall.

“Yeah,” I replied, the exhaustion in my voice echoing his own. “But we did it. Burned through a good bit of ammo. Seems like unless we land a headshot, our bullets aren’t doing much good.”

“You noticed too, huh?”

I nodded.

“Damn.” He shook his head. “Was hoping it was just me being paranoid.”

Finn winced and grabbed his arm, which had a heavy gash of blood running down it.

“Here,” I said, pulling out some of my gauze and tossing it to him. “Patch yourself up, get some water, and then we need to move.”

We couldn’t rest for long. The puppet master was still loose, and we had the other gang members to deal with. Not to mention the soldiers.

I have no idea what they’re doing or if they’re in the building yet. Though I imagine they couldn’t miss the gunfight that just happened, and I couldn’t have heard any other gunshots over ours. They could have already started their raid, for all I know.

I got up with a groan. “Let’s find a place to recover and reload. Then we need to push on.”

The two of them voiced agreement, and we went back through the employee-only area until we were in a secluded supply closet just big enough for the three of us. Finn and Ade sat on folding chairs while I made do with a five-gallon bucket as a stool.

Adeline and Finn fiddled with their Mantles while I checked over my gun.

“Anything new?” I asked when they finished.

Both shook their heads.

“I’m level nine, no new skills,” Adeline said.

“Same here. Level nine, almost level ten.”

Damn, has the Charisma boost really helped me that much? I shook my head. It also helps that I didn’t have half my levels stolen like they did.

Though the pace at which I was leveling was impressive, I also didn’t need to let myself out-level my party. That would only come back to bite me in the ass when it really counted.

“Word of advice, guys. I’d start dropping some points in Charisma. I’m nearly level thirteen. Which puts me a good bit ahead of you.”

“Already planning on it,” Adeline said.

“Well, hell, I can’t be the weakest link in this party, so you know I’m in,” Finn said.

“Good.” I rose and glanced at them. “Let’s go deal with the tamer and link up with the soldiers.”

We crept through the side rooms until we got to the central portion of the mall where we’d last seen the man who controlled the Carnival Beasts.

But there was no one there when we returned.

“I don’t like this. Where is everyone? We should have seen someone by now.”

My instincts screamed at me, and I cursed. “This has to be a trap, retreat─” I began but was interrupted by the thump of boots echoing throughout the desolate mall.

Well over a dozen men appeared from the surrounding stores, all of them pointing a variety of weapons at us. The man from before stood in the center of the crowd.

“Ding, ding, ding. Give the man a prize.” He smiled at us, still superior. “I’ve got to give you props for defeating my playthings and without losing any of your party.” He gave us a mocking clap. “The boss would like a word. So, you’ll be coming with us.”

The men quickly advanced and took our guns before we could think about resisting. If we fought, they’d shred us in seconds.

“Guess we have no choice.” I couldn’t stop the cheeky grin on my face as I spoke and held up a Vulcan greeting. “Take us to your leader.”

Chapter 20- Where to Draw the Line?

They took our equipment and supplies before they bound us with zip ties. The men kept their guns jammed against our spines as they marched us deeper into the mall.

Three men ran ahead while the others spread out and kept an eye on us. We passed even more empty stores; most of the clothing shops had been ransacked, as well as the single sporting goods store. But beyond that, it seemed the rest of the outlets had been spared from the looting.

I paused as we took a right, heading deeper into the mall.

They’re taking us to the food court. It’s in the center of the building and could be easily fortified.

My hunch was soon proved correct as we rounded another corner and were met with a miniature camp.

The once circular food stalls were still present but were augmented with welded sheets of metal and wooden supports. They’d added to the area and fenced off the entire section. They included a few makeshift barricades and even a gate. The once chain-link fence was bolted with hunks of metal and tire strips, and it swung open at our approach.

The men led us past dozens of people, not the gang members or hardened thugs I expected, but ordinary people.

What the hell is going on here?

These don’t look like a gang. They look like refugees.

In the center of the room were three rows of metal tables and benches. The tamer led us to the center most table where a long-haired man sat, eating a bowl of soup.

“Boss,” the tamer said with a nod, motioning to us.

That’s Salvatore?

He was younger than I was expecting, maybe late twenties or just a little older. He had sharp features, and his hair was thick and dark, though not nearly as dark as mine, and it fell to his shoulders. He wasn’t built large, but there was plenty of lean muscle on him, and he had a calmness about him that unsettled me.

“Thank you, Matthias.”

Salvatore stared at me with chocolate brown eyes that matched his hair almost exactly. He had a piercing gaze and a thin, angular nose that led to a scowling mouth, his pale lips grimacing as if he were in pain.

He set his spoon down and pushed his bowl aside as he directed us to sit. “Please, have a seat,” he said, his voice a warm and husky contrast to his unsettling demeanor.

“Don’t think you’ll leave us much choice in the matter, so why the hell not?”

We did as instructed and sat down. The moment we did, the men with their guns halfway through our chest cavities backed off, and I breathed a mental sigh of relief.

If they haven’t shot us yet, then we might be able to talk ourselves out of this mess. Though, if this turns into a fight, we’re outgunned, but not entirely outmatched. We’re strong, but Demon Form is powerful enough to catch them by surprise if I time it right.

I can turn the tables if I can capture Salvatore. Finn can tank the bullets with Abyssal Armor and Void Shield while Adeline turns the court to the deepest level of hell.

I kept a smile off my face and stared at Salvatore, waiting for him to speak.

He drummed his fingers on the table and glanced at each one of us. “I’d like to ask who you are, but I can guess. Reynolds’s attack dogs. But you’re not soldiers.” He motioned to Finn. “Not all of you, at least. Mercs, then.”

“Something like that. We were hired to put a stop to your activities, but I’m no one’s dog,” I said.

“You’re right. Dog was too generous. They’re loyal, at least. If you fight for money, then you’re nothing but a scavenger, fighting over whatever scraps you can.” He scowled and held his hands out. “Does this look like scraps to you? Like hell we’re going to roll over so you can pick this place clean.” Salvatore paused as he looked at us once more. “If you’re mercs, then Reynolds won’t care if I end you. Though why send only three─”

He snapped his fingers and whistled three times, one low and the others higher in pitch. The entire camp became a hive of activity. Everyone bustled about as they grabbed weapons and threw on body armor.

Salvatore pointed the finger at us. “You’re not alone. Which means we have trouble coming.”

They’re more organized than I was expecting. But makeshift barricades and improvised body armor won’t be enough to stand against Moore’s squad. Not unless they have some more unique classes up their sleeves.

Things were busy in the camp, and no one was paying attention to us beyond Salvatore. If I was going to make my move, it would have to be now.

“Are you planning on killing us?” I asked.

“Of course. It’s nothing persona─“

Before he could finish the sentence, I shifted to Demon Form. The zip ties binding my hands snapped in an instant as I leapt to my feet and reached over the table and grabbed Salvatore by the throat.

His eyes widened in shock at seeing my eyes blacken and horns sprout from my head.

“Well, I’m afraid I have a problem with that,” I said as I hauled him out of his seat, cutting off his airflow.

The crowd of people stopped at my sudden outburst, and they stared in shock at my demonic visage. Each held guns in their hands, but none dared move while I held Salvatore.

I wrapped my arm around his neck and shouted at the crowd that stood in slack-jawed terror. “Our weapons will be returned to us. Now!”

Like a gunshot, they scrambled and went to retrieve our belongings. When they returned, one man meekly set the bundle of guns and supplies on the table in front of us and backed away.

Finn gathered them and passed them to us. I slung the SMG on my back and grabbed my pistol, placing the barrel against the back of Salvatore’s head.

“Alright, tell everyone to drop their weapons in a neat pile,” I demanded.

Salvatore risked a look back and shook his head in wonder. “She was right. I owe her an apology.” He turned around and addressed the room. “Everyone, do as he said. Drop your weapons.”

They all slowly lowered their guns, dropping them in a disorganized pile on the table in the center of the room. They followed Salvatore’s orders without question. Which meant they had absolute faith in him.

It was actually rather impressive.

“Can I stand up now?” Salvatore asked when the last of his men had disarmed.

“Yeah, but if you try any─“

“You’ll shoot me and slaughter everyone. I know the drill,” he said and stood up. He looked back and smiled softly. “The man with the horns. I didn’t think you were real. I guess I should be thanking you.”

“For what?”

“For saving me,” a voice spoke from the far edge of the room.

A woman walked in, and I knew her at once. Though she looked a thousand times better than the last time I’d seen her. Her thick brown hair was combed, and her heart-shaped face was smiling, her dark eyes staring back at me.

I laughed. “You know, you owe my friend here a new pistol.”

She smiled. “I never managed to thank you for saving my life and for rescuing me from those men.”

The sight they left flared to life, and I didn’t want to remember the broken and bleeding woman on the stained and soiled mattress, who was now in front of me, shoving that memory into my face once more.

“Yeah, don’t mention it,” I said. “Never got to know your name, though.”

“Never got to know yours either,” she said with a laugh. “I’m Clara.”

“Killian…it’s good to see you looking better.” I dropped my Demon Form and looked over to Finn and Adeline, who still had their weapons pointed at the group. “Put your guns down, guys. We’re not going to fight them.”

“Are you sure, Kill?” Adeline asked.

I nodded. “Look at this place. These aren’t gang members. They’re refugees. We were played, or at least misinformed.”

“Captain Reynolds wouldn’t do that,” Finn said.

“Maybe you’re right,” I said, turning to Finn. “But I’m not going to slaughter innocents for a few experience points and coins now, are you?”

He shook his head.

“Good.” I motioned to Salvatore. “Truce?”

He thought about it for a second before nodding. “Truce.”

Extermination Quest: Shop Till you Drop Failed!

I lost a good bit of experience and coins, but at least I’ll be able to sleep at night.

We holstered our weapons and sat down at the table while Adeline and Finn introduced themselves.

Clara kept stealing glances my way, and I had to ask. “What, do I have something on my face?”

“You have horns and black eyes. What are you?”

Salvatore looked up from saying something to Finn. “I would very much like to know that as well. I’ve seen some unique classes before, but none such as yours.”

Telling them would only lead to conflict, but I was damned tired of hiding, of being ashamed of the decision I’d made.

Besides, we have the upper hand here. If this does go south, then we can handle it. But I need to find out if people can work with me, even after knowing the truth, or if that’s an impossibility.

It was a gamble, but as I discreetly drew my pistol under the table and thumbed the hammer back, I was calm in knowing that I was at least stacking the deck in my favor.

I sighed. “I’m the Demon Lord.”

Salvatore went rigid.

Clara didn’t say anything, but everyone in the back started freaking out and went for their weapons on the table.

My pistol went to Salvatore’s forehead. “Can we not do this dance? I’m getting fucking sick of it.”

Salvatore nodded and whistled again to his men, and they stopped trying to go for the guns. “No one do something stupid and get us all killed.” He rested his palms flat on the table and leaned back. “You’re the Demon Lord, but what’s the Harbinger of the Apocalypse doing storming a mall full of survivors? Why rescue and treat my sister?”

“Clara’s your sister?”

“She is, and she told me you personally carried her from the garage and took care of her.”

I thought she was asleep through all that.

“She was hurt and in a bad situation. How could I have left her like that? I may be the Demon Lord, but I’m still human.”

“Regardless of what you are, you have my thanks. Though I don’t know if I should let you walk out of here. I’m grateful, but you’re set to destroy the world. It’s worth the risk to my life to try to stop you.”

I pressed the barrel hard against his forehead. “Don’t try it.”

Before he could say anything else, two suppressed gunshots echoed through the mall, and Salvatore smiled. “How about we save the threats until after we deal with your friends? What do you say?”

Side Quest: The Tables Have Turned!

Deal with the invading military presence

Difficulty: Hard

Reward: 2247 Exp!

1,000 AC!

Oh hell, why not?

Let’s see if we can’t talk our way out of this. I scoffed. Hopefully, my Charisma is high enough.

The soldiers used suppressors, but Salvatore’s men didn’t have such luxury, and their deafening gunfire resounded throughout the mall. It bounced off the tile and echoed, making it hard to pin down, but Salvatore stood and led the way as we followed close behind him.

He pulled two pistols from a hidden holster at his lower back. Berettas. Though they were modified with extended magazines, foregrips, and muzzle brakes.

I smirked. “You had those the entire time?”

Salvatore chuckled, flashing me a fierce grin. “Didn’t think I was just going to sit there and let you execute me, did you?”

I laughed. “Can’t really argue that one.”

He grunted, picking up speed. Salvatore barreled forward at a breakneck pace, and we had to sprint to catch up.

The gunfire thankfully drowned out our footsteps on the tile, so I didn’t have to worry about turning the corner and catching a surprise face full of buckshot.

We ducked through what used to be a candy store that was under renovations when all this started. The dark-tinted glass kept us out of eyesight while four of Salvatore’s men crouched behind a cobbled-together barricade and took potshots at the soldiers.

We rushed through the store and out the back. Salvatore was hoping to catch the soldiers off guard and ambush them, but I still wasn’t sure what was going on.

Reynolds could have just been misinformed. And he’d better hope that’s the case, for his sake. But I don’t want this to end in a river of blood if I can help it.

“Let me talk to them,” I said.

He cursed under his breath. “Fine, you get one chance.” He held up a finger. “One.”

I nodded, crept forward, and peered around the hallway. Only a handful of the men were here, but Staff Sergeant Moore was leading them, angled low over the half-moon welcome desk. It was old, solid oak, but whatever kind of ammo Salvatore’s men used, it was effective.

Bullets ate up the wood but couldn’t manage to puncture through. Neither side gained traction, each popping up to fire off a few rounds and retreating. With the open nature of the mall, there was no additional cover, and this had turned into a battle of attrition.

Until the soldiers brought their skills to bear.

Moore held out his hand and primed a Phantom Grenade. It glowed a soft blue, and he hurled it at the barricade and ducked.

“Shit!”

I grabbed the others, and we hit the deck as the explosion went off. I’d already been on the receiving end of one of the grenades before, but it wasn’t a feeling you got used to.

The shock wave rolled over us, shaking my chest and causing my heart to skip a beat while my ears rang. Bits of tile and wood flew over us and clattered around the store. Glass shattered as a wave of pressure thrummed through the floor.

As the blast subsided, the four of us got off the ground and went to check on the others.

The metal barricade was gone. Only splintered and cracked fragments of steel remained, splashed with blood and viscera. Salvatore’s men were nothing but hunks of too pink and red meat, their lifeblood splattered across the ground, walls, and once clothing stores. The nearby windows had been blasted apart, allowing blood to splash across every garment displayed in the storefront.

I was stunned at the sight of it, human beings weren’t meant to look like raw hamburger meat covered in tomato sauce, yet that’s exactly what stared me down as I rounded the corner.

All we need is some really long pasta, and we’ve got spaghetti.

That thought made me want to laugh until I choked or ran screaming from the room, but I shook my head and stepped from the storefront towards the staff sergeant.

Moore turned as glass crunched under my steps. He leveled his rifle at my heart before he realized it was me and relaxed slightly.

“Ah, kid. I was wondering where you ran off to.”

“Staff Sergeant,” I said and gestured in horror at the gore in front of us. “Stop this. These people aren’t criminals. They’re survivors. There’s no need for any of this.”

“Not criminals, you say.” He chuckled and reloaded his weapon. “Salvatore and his men have been stealing supplies for weeks, encroaching on our territory and taking from us. I’d say that makes them criminals.”

“So just trying to survive in this nightmare world warrants a death sentence? These are innocent people!”

“They’re our enemies,” he snapped. “And Captain Reynolds won’t stand for it any longer.”

I paused. “So Reynolds knew?”

“Of course he did.” Moore rounded up his men. “Now, I’m done talking, merc. Help or don’t. It doesn’t matter to me.”

Finn stepped forward. “Staff Sergeant, you can’t just slaughter these people.”

Moore’s eyes grew cold, and he spoke with calm calculation. “We can, and we will, and I won’t be questioned by a fucking deserter.”

“We’re not going to let you go on a killing spree,” I said, holding my voice firm. “It’s not going to happen.”

He laughed, and cruelty spilled from his voice as he gripped his rifle tight, just itching to make a move. “Try. I’d love the excuse to gut the lot of you.”

Moore turned to leave, and I couldn’t let him. His men would roll over everyone like a plague, and there wouldn’t be a single survivor remaining.

I knew what I had to do and raised my gun. The sight centered on his back. “Don’t do it, Moore!”

He looked back at the gun pointed at him and stiffened as the decision to end my life crossed his eyes.

Moore was quick with his rifle, but he wasn’t faster than my trigger finger. I squeezed off a burst even as he brought his gun to bear.

My shots hit him in the chest and shoulder, his Kevlar saving his life as he staggered back. Blood soaked into his uniform from the round in his shoulder and caused his rifle to jerk as he opened fire.

Bullets tore past me. Fire sliced past my calf as two sledgehammers slammed into my chest. I gasped, choking on the air fleeing my lungs as my ribs cracked under pressure.

I crashed back, my head smacking the tile as movement erupted around me.

Ailment: Major Bleeding

-25 HP per Minute

Salvatore rushed from the store behind me and started firing on the soldiers. Finn barreled out in his Abyssal Armor while Ade started throwing fireballs like a Roman candle.

My entire body was in pain, but as soon as my adrenaline spiked, it fell away, and I stood, scrambling for my gun while I tried to get a sight on Moore.

He’d retreated from the open back to one of the new, trendy punk shops with his men.

I took cover behind the busted welcome desk and fired off a burst from the SMG to discourage them from peeking out while I assessed the situation.

Damn it, I hate to ask her, but I don’t see any other plan that doesn’t risk our lives.

“Ade, use Conflagration!”

She cursed from behind the wall of the bathroom.

“Got it!” she shouted, but her voice quivered, and my heart sunk low.

Adeline ducked her head out to get a visual on the store while I blind fired in two- and three-round bursts to keep the soldiers busy. Her hand burst into flame, a bright red that bit the air hungrily, searching for food. The flame shot from her hand and towards the open door.

It landed just inside the door, and as if someone had poured gasoline all over the ground, the tile went up in a great whoosh, spreading out into a perfect circle.

The flames tentatively licked the sergeant and his men before greedily striking at their heels and the hems of their pants.

It grew and then devoured the soldiers.

Once the fire took hold of the men, all thoughts of fighting fled them, and they hastily tried to beat out the fires eating away at them in a futile effort. The torrent of flames surrounding them multiplied with each growing second and wouldn’t let go. Moore and his men tried to escape the confines of the room and fled the circle. Despite the damage it caused them, they spilled out of the storefront, bathed in hellfire.

Most of the men only took a few steps before their bodies failed them, dropping to the ground as the fire ate them alive.

Moore made it the furthest, half of his face blistering and sliding free from his skull. The fire was so intense the heat burst Moore’s remaining eye, and steaming vitreous fluid splashed out as he fell to his knees.

He knelt for a single second, one tortured breath fleeing his lungs, before he crashed to the tile in a pile of ash.

The rancid stench of overcooked meat filled my nose as I took sight of the ruined corpses.

Adeline canceled her spell and stared in horror at what she’d done. The fires died out as if drenched in water, leaving behind only human shaped ash piles and a lifetime of nightmares.

I wanted to vomit, to hurl chunks and scream at the inhumanity in front of me, but I couldn’t look away. I owed Adeline that much.

My plan. My orders. My responsibility.

My God, what have I done?

I had no words to offer Adeline, who stared at the deaths she helped cause with fearful tears screaming for release in her eyes.

I knew she needed comfort, but I wasn’t the one she needed it from, not at that moment. I caught Finn’s eye and gave him a nod.

He rushed over and wrapped Adeline in a hug. She fell to pieces in his arms and collapsed against him.

I sighed and turned away, letting them have what little privacy I could give.

This world is turning us into monsters bite by bite.

Salvatore crouched down, looking side to side at the wide stretches of the empty mall, and I went over and joined him.

“How many more were there?” he asked.

“Twenty in all, so sixteen left.” I scoffed. “We caught them by surprise that time. I doubt we get that lucky again.”

He nodded. “And besides, there’s no way she’s fit enough to try that again,“ he said with a sad glance back. “She’s going to break from that.”

“No.” I shook my head. “She’s tougher than she looks, believe me. She’ll bounce back.”

My words rang hollow in my head, but I couldn’t afford to doubt Adeline. I had to trust she could come back from her own pit of darkness.

Adeline was stronger than me, and if I could come back from what I’d done, she could too.

“We need to regroup,” Salvatore said. “My men are scattered, and that’s going to get them killed if they go up against a squad of trained soldiers. We need to hurry and get on top of this before we can’t anymore.”

“I agree. Though we’re outgunned, our skills can help bridge that gap.” I sighed. “But we have to wait on Adeline. I’m not going to leave her alone.”

The prospect of her having to kill more people twisted my stomach into knots, but I shoved it down, glancing at Finn and Adeline.

Can I continue to ask them to follow me after this? We’re kids, and this is more than anyone could handle.

Salvatore noticed the pained expression on my face, and his own softened. “You’re suffering under the weight of your actions. Of the decisions you’ve made?”

I scoffed. “What does it matter to you?”

He chuckled and took a quick peek to make sure no one was coming. “It matters quite a bit, actually. You’re the Demon Lord, and that makes you one of the most dangerous people in this new world of ours. I’m anxious to find out the kind of man you are and whether or not I should attempt to kill you.”

“I wish you wouldn’t try. I don’t want your blood on my hands too,” I said and leaned back against the wall. “There’s enough there already.”

“Fair enough. I’ll hold off, for now,” he said before looking down. “How’s your leg?”

“What?” I asked, looking down at the rapidly growing bloodstain soaking through my pants leg. “Oh, right. I got shot.”

I hadn’t noticed the pain besides the initial tug when the bullet hit me, but the cracked ribs made me forget about it.

When every breath hurts like hell, lesser pain goes away.

I rolled up my pants and found a gash just above my ankle. It wasn’t that deep, but it bled like it was. I grabbed the trauma kit inside my satchel and wiped the wound before I sprayed some antibacterial spray with a painkiller in it over before slapping some antiseptic gauze and medical tape around it to stop the blood loss.

My health will go back up shortly, and I’ll be right as rain. Just have to manage to not die in the process.

I also downed a single Tylenol 3 from the kit to take the edge off the worst of it and stood, ensuring I could put weight on the leg.

By the time I’d finished playing doctor, Adeline and Finn walked over. Ade’s eyes were puffy and red, and she looked frayed, like she was falling apart. She leaned on Finn even though she wasn’t injured.

Salvatore was right. I asked too much of her, and she’s coming undone.

There was nothing I could say to ease her pain. Nothing I could do to help.

“Finn, take Ade, and the two of you head back down to the maintenance tunnels, hunker down, and I’ll come to find you when this is over.”

Finn was about to protest, but I glared at him and gave him no room to argue. “Do it, Finn. That’s an order.”

He nodded, and the two of them hobbled off towards the way we came.

“Risky move,” Salvatore said when they’d left. “Splitting your party like that.”

I shrugged. “Ade’s in no shape to fight, but I can’t just leave her alone.”

Salvatore checked over his weapons and smiled. “You care for your friends.”

“Obviously.”

“Hm,” he muttered as the two of us made our way deeper into the mall.

We passed by two corpses a minute or so later. Their throats had been slashed so deep their vertebrae showed through blood and yellowed bone.

Salvatore stopped and touched their hands with a somber expression. I gave him a second while he paid his respects to his friends, but we were out in the open, and the both of us knew it.

He stood up with a nod to me, and we pushed forward, our eyes sweeping each store as we walked past, but we didn’t find anyone. There was a newly added movie theatre with polished brass stanchions leading towards the front entrance, and we had to skirt around them to move on.

“I don’t like this. Where is everyone?”

“Standard procedure is to defend the food court and our people at all costs, so most of them are there, but my headhunters should be searching for the enemy as we speak.”

He thumbed back at the two bodies behind us. “Thomas and Conner back there were part of them. I don’t know where the others are, but they always travel in groups.”

Bursts of gunfire sounded off close to us, which snapped us out of our conversation and forced us to act.

Salvatore and I took off towards the fight.

Though we were close, it was over by the time we arrived. Three of Salvatore’s men were dead, with multiple chest wounds and headshots.

“Look out!”

I turned as Finn charged forward. He lowered his shoulder and barreled into me, knocking me to the ground as a hail of bullets rained from overhead.

Finn grabbed Salvatore and shoved him down next to me as his hand shimmered. A gaping black hole tore into our reality and covered us like an umbrella as three soldiers appeared from the second floor unloading their weapons.

A hailstorm of bullets scattered all around us, shattering the tile as the muffled gunfire rang in my ears and spent shell casings clattered to the floor like drops of rain. But every round that would have killed us was absorbed into the eternal void as Finn held his shield overhead.

The fire dwindled after a few seconds, and a voice shouted from above. “Reloading!”

Salvatore drew his twin pistols and ran from cover, firing in three-round bursts at targets I couldn’t see. He seemed to shimmer for a second, and a flash of orange neon flared just off his skin and trailed behind him as he leapt ten feet into the air.

He reached the second-floor railing in a flash, and as he grabbed the ledge, he spun. Salvatore brought his leg up in an arc that caught the first soldier across the face.

He stumbled back, his rifle falling from his grasp. Salvatore pivoted and dropped behind the stunned soldier. He wrapped his arm around the soldier’s neck and then drew one of his pistols, aiming at a soldier a few feet away.

The startled soldier was in the middle of shoving a fresh magazine into his rifle when Salvatore opened fire and blew his face out the back of his skull.

While Salvatore dispatched the soldiers with devastating efficiency, a shadow fell over the opaque glass railing to my left. A soldier appeared. It was the female soldier that had dropped the Carnival Beasts as we walked in.

She’d forgone her reload and instead went for her pistol and had the drop on Salvatore.

I turned, flicking my hand up as I activated Rend.

My fingertips darkened, elongating into claws as the air above my fingers shifted and warped. The pitch-black blades launched forward, rocketing upward until they collided with the reinforced glass and steel walkway.

Rend cut through the steel like it was butter and nearly sliced the entire bridge in half. The safety glass cracked into a thousand pieces and then buckled. Shards scattered to the ground, reflecting the fluorescent lights overhead as the floor came out from under the woman.

She didn’t have time to blink as her footing collapsed, and she found herself in freefall. She hit the tile a second later and crumpled, folding up into a ball as glass and steel rained down around her. Metal groaned before a third of the walkway collapsed around her, spilling out around her.

None of the falling debris hit her, and as the echo of the crash faded away, she lifted her head. Blood ran down her cheek as she blinked and jerked up.

She turned just as I bore down on her.

My submachine gun barked, and a bright red ‘Critical’ appeared above her ventilated skull.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Human): 42 Exp!

Experience Boost (22.5%): 9 Exp!

Total Gain: 51 Exp!

AC Earned: 412!

Salvatore turned, still holding onto the soldier’s neck. He glanced at the wrecked walkway and then at me, his eyes lighting up in humor. He smirked. “Thanks for the save.”

I rubbed the back of my head. “What can I say? Women can’t seem to stop falling for me.”

He chuckled before he glanced at the captured soldier, still struggling to breathe. He grunted and tossed the soldier over the railing.

The man landed with a sickening thud followed by several snaps of bone and a pained groan.

Salvatore hopped down and landed into a roll as he hit the ground. As he stood, he turned to the broken soldier and put two bullets in the back of his head.

I whistled at the casual display of superhuman agility. “That’s some skill you got.”

Salvatore nodded. “It’s called Parkour. Though, thankfully, I don’t have to say the name every time I use it.”

I laughed as Finn came up behind us. “And I thought we had a monopoly on badass classes.”

Salvatore turned and proffered his hand to Finn. “You saved our lives. I’m grateful. Thank you.”

Finn nodded, grinning as he shook. “You tell me what your class is, and we’ll call it square.”

He laughed. “Acrobat.”

With that, Salvatore went and started looting the bodies, checking to make sure they were dead and taking anything of value off their corpses.

I whirled on Finn as soon as Salvatore walked away. “What the hell, man? I told you to take care of Ade!”

“And I did, Hermano. She’s safe down in the tunnels behind a locked door. She’s fine. But I didn’t like leaving you alone with Salvatore. You needed someone to watch your back. And good thing I came when I did. I saved your life.”

He was right, but I knew that. I just didn’t like the thought of Adeline being left alone.

I softened my glare and held up my fist. “Thanks for the save, but how did you know they were there?”

He shrugged and bumped my fist. “Luck mostly. I rounded the corner and was about to call out when I noticed movement from above.”

“Speaking of badass skills. I’d say yours more than qualifies,” Salvatore said as he walked up.

Finn grinned wide. “What are frenemies for?”

I chuckled. “We should keep searching for the rest of the soldiers. I don’t like that we haven’t heard any more gunfire in a while.”

Finn nodded. “Then let’s get going. I know what I said, but I want to get back to Adeline as quickly as I can.”

With that, the three of us took off deeper into the mall, just looking for trouble.

Chapter 21- A Choice to Make

As we ran through the mall, we passed more of Salvatore’s headhunters, who hadn’t seen any sign of the other soldiers either.

I slowed up as we reached a deserted section of the mall.

“This is strange, isn’t it?”

“What? That we haven’t run into any more soldiers? Yeah, I’d say this is weird,” Finn said. “They’d have split up into fireteams like Moore’s group. And with twenty men, they could cover a lot of ground.”

“Maybe they retreated after Moore died?” Salvatore said.

If only.

We reached a stretch of the hallway with shops on either side. It was the furthest out we’d gone, and even Salvatore’s men hadn’t scouted out the area.

My instincts told me that something was off. I glanced up at the second level, but there was nothing there.

“Hold up,” I said.

Finn and Salvatore stopped instantly.

“You feel it too?” Salvatore asked.

I nodded, raising my SMG. “We’re being watched.”

The three of us backed up. Finn donned his Abyssal Armor as Salvatore scanned the area with his dual pistols.

We slowly retreated, our ears attuned to any sound, when suddenly leather squeaked against the tile.

I turned to my right, the barrel of my gun pointed at the store entrance.

“Don’t shoot, Killian. We’re friendly,” a familiar voice spoke.

Finn and Salvatore turned at the sound, their weapons trained on the voice.

Shuffling came from the store, and First Sergeant Wise stuck his head out, arms in the air.

“Wise?” I asked. “What are you doing here?”

He looked from me to the others. “Can I have your word that you won’t fire if we come out?”

I glanced at Finn, who nodded.

“Fine, but leave your weapons in the store. I see a gun, and I can’t guarantee what happens next.”

Wise nodded and turned back to the store. “Weapons down.”

The clattering of metal and plastic echoed from the store, and soon after, eight men walked out, their hands up.

Wise stood front and center, and I sighed, lowering my gun.

He’d been open and honest with us since we’d met, and I liked him. He struck me as an honorable man, and though part of me reasoned we shouldn’t trust the soldiers after everything that had happened, I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

He sighed slowly, wiping the beads of sweat from his face. He nodded. “Thank you for not opening fire.”

“What are you doing here? You said you weren’t part of this mission.”

“I know. But I was still listening in.” He shrugged. “Our comms might be shit off base, but they still have some functionality. What little I could make out sounded bad.” He shook his head. “We didn’t know. About the survivors. Not all of us at least.”

Finn stepped up. “How is that possible? These are your men. Even Moore reported to you.”

“It was Captain Reynolds and Moore. It had to be. Moore was the one submitting the reports, but he couldn’t have gotten away with it without Reynolds and his men backing him.” He spat. “Moore was always a bit of a fanatic, but this?” Wise held his hands out, motioning to the mall. “Killing civilians over resources? I didn’t think it was this bad.”

“So you’re saying you had nothing to do with this?” I asked, glancing at the men behind him.

“I didn’t. And these men didn’t. That I can say with absolute certainty,” he said. “Beyond that, I can’t say who knew and who didn’t.” He scoffed. “But I guess it doesn’t matter now. Moore’s dead, I presume?”

I nodded. “Along with a good number of soldiers and Salvatore’s men.”

Wise turned to Salvatore and nodded, his eyes pained. “You have my condolences. I’m sorry.”

He grimaced. “I don’t want your apologies. I want retribution. There will be hell to pay for this.”

I held my hands up, stepping between both men. “There will be time for this discussion later. We haven’t heard gunfire, so assuming the rest of the soldiers are dead, we need to focus on regrouping and recovering. Make sure our people are safe.” I motioned to Wise and his men. “Take them with us, and then we can sort everything out.”

Salvatore paused, looking from me to Wise. For a moment, he didn’t say anything, but eventually, he nodded. “You’re right.” He turned to Wise. “Bind your hands with the zip ties I know you’re carrying, and trust that if you try to make a move, your brains will leak out of your skulls before they even have a chance to consider how badly you fucked up.”

Wise nodded, holding up his hands.

“Check them for hidden weapons,” I said.

Salvatore chuckled. “Of course.”

Wise and his men stood in a neat line in front of the outlet as the three of us patted them down. To my surprise, none of them carried a weapon, not even a hidden boot knife. Once we’d checked them over, we took their zip ties and bound them tight.

It was strange being on the opposite end of tying someone up when I was the one bound just an hour or so ago.

Just goes to show how quickly things can change in this new world of ours.

When the last soldier was bound, a notification flashed in front of us.

Side Quest: The Tables Have Turned Completed!

Deal with the invading military presence

Difficulty: Hard

Reward: 2247 Exp!

Experience Boost (22.5%): 506 Exp!

Total Gain: 2753 Exp!

AC Earned: 1,000!

Level Up!

I waved the screen away. “Looks like those were the last of the soldiers.”

“In the mall, at least.” Salvatore sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “This was a declaration of war, and with the losses we’ve already taken, there is no way we can stand against them.”

He stopped walking and leaned against the door frame of a makeup and jewelry store. “I don’t know what we can do besides packing up and leaving, but we won’t survive long out there, not with so many mouths to feed.”

I didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t my decision, wasn’t something I had any stake in. But despite our rocky start, we’d fought together, and there seemed to be at least an uneasy alliance between us.

Even after I told him I was the Demon Lord, we’ve worked together without issue. That’s something no amount of money can buy.

If I could help him, then I would. It was worth the time investment to me just to count him as a potential ally.

“How about you take Wise and his men back to the food court and regroup? We’ll go grab Adeline and meet you there.” I motioned to the soldiers. “Then we can try to come up with a plan to deal with all this.”

Salvatore chuckled before huffing, shaking his head. “Sounds like an idea I can get behind. I’m not thinking straight at the moment anyway, right now.” He stood and drew his pistols. “I’ll see you back there.”

He prodded Wise, and they departed, marching in a line down the hallway.

Finn and I shared a look when they vanished around the corner.

“What a day, huh?” I asked.

“Yeah.” He bumped his knuckles against my shoulder. “I know it had to be done. But asking Adeline to kill those men?” He shook his head. “I don’t know, man. This whole world is fucked up, and she’s already been through so much. Now this?”

“I know.” I sighed. “I know.”

“Anyway. Let’s get going. I’m not leaving her down there for another minute longer.”

Without waiting, he took off, and I ran to catch up to him. We traced our steps back through the mall and hit the basement. From there, we entered the tunnels, and Finn led me through a few passageways to a locked door.

He approached and knocked softly. “It’s me, Amante.”

After a few brief seconds, the bolt unlatched, and Adeline peeked her head out. Her face was still a little puffy, but she’d stopped crying at least.

Finn instantly wrapped her in a hug when we walked in, and she returned it fiercely. She shook slightly, but her breathing was solid and steady, and I knew she wasn’t going to break down again.

I knew exactly what she was going through, and there was nothing I could do to entirely fix her, but I could do what Death did for me. Be her voice of reason to remind her that what she did was necessary.

Half of the blame landed on my shoulders, maybe all of it.

And she needed to know that.

“It was my call, Adeline, my orders,” I said. “Their deaths are on my hands, not yours.”

She sniffed. “I’m the one that killed them, though.”

“No, you were just the weapon I used, and weapons aren’t to blame for the acts they commit. That blame falls on the wielder. I wielded you like I would a gun. That blood is on me, not you.”

I didn’t know if my words were of any help, but she sniffed once more and wiped her eyes, finally cracking a semblance of a smile.

“There you go again, shouldering the entire weight of everything yourself. Some things never change.”

“Can’t help it.” I smiled at her, to which I received a genuine laugh.

Adeline nodded. “Alright. Catch me up on what I missed.”

Finn smiled and held out his hand. “We’ll talk on the way back to the food court. I’ll fill you in.”

She nodded, her fingers clutching at his palms, and she grinned, letting him help her to her feet.

I didn’t know if she would be okay after this. It was something she would have to come to terms with herself. But I knew Finn would be there for her to lean on, and that was all that mattered.

The three of us left, and as we walked back to the food court, Finn and I caught her up on everything that had happened.

By the time we arrived, the scent of stale corndogs and pizza that even the apocalypse couldn’t get to come out sent a rumble through my stomach. It reminded me that I hadn’t eaten before we left this morning, and I was starving. My health had at least refilled, and the pain in my chest and leg from the gunshots had vanished, which I was grateful for.

When we arrived at the court, the gate opened, and we headed in.

At once, I could tell a good number of Salvatore’s men simply hadn’t made it back. Maybe a third or more were gone, and nearly everyone else was sporting blood-soaked clothes as they sat around the cafeteria tables, eating or cleaning and checking over their weapons.

Salvatore was busy walking around the camp, talking to the survivors, while Wise and his men were tied up by the fountain and held at gunpoint.

There was a lot to do, but for a single moment, I just wanted to sit down and process everything. So, we found an empty table towards the back and sat.

The adrenaline from combat had worn off, and I was shaking, trying my damndest not to fall asleep. At least my ravenous stomach helped me stay awake.

I pulled out some bottles of water and protein bars and handed them to Finn and Adeline. In under a minute, I’d scarfed down the chalky cookies and cream bar and drained my bottle.

I need to buy some more food, so I don’t lose my Well-Fed bonus.

When I finished, I opened my Mantle.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 450/450 (495)

Mana: 500/500

Stamina: 450/450

Level: 14

Exp: 1236/1639

30 Stat Points Available!

Damn, even if it wasn’t nearly as much experience for the quest Reynolds gave us, it still was enough to level me up quite a bit.

With thirty stat points, it gave me a good bit of room to improve. There were any number of things I could do. But with how things kept going, I was going to need more offensive capabilities before too long.

Strength boosts Rend, so it’s a no-brainer.

I was rather impressed with how well it sliced through the steel and glass walkway like it was nothing and how it ripped through the Carnival Beasts. I was confident I’d made the right call in picking it.

It’s been a minute since I’ve upgraded Wisdom, but with a skill point coming to me next level, it stands to reason that I’ll probably need to improve it.

I added five to Wisdom and Endurance, ensuring I had a steady supply of attacks to throw if and when I’d need them. Five went to Strength, Constitution, Agility, and finally Charisma, evening out most of my stats.

Stat Page

Strength: 40

Constitution: 30

Perception: 25

Endurance: 30

Agility: 35

Wisdom: 35

Charisma: 40

I hit select and nearly dropped to the floor as pain shoved an ice pick through my brain, and my body grew into a raging inferno.

My body grew heavy, and my clothes ripped slightly as my muscles expanded. My body was as weak as a kitten, and yet I felt stronger than I’d ever had in my life.

Like when I’d increased Charisma, the sensation flooded through me and then faded an instant later.

“Woah,” I said, my head spinning as I blinked my eyes clear. “That felt weird.”

Adeline snorted. “Yeah, tell me about it.”

I glanced over and blinked. “I just boosted my Strength, so it makes sense my body had to adapt, but what the hell did you do, Ade?”

She’d been gorgeous before, but whatever she’d done had accentuated her beauty even more now, and I’d swear her breasts had even gotten bigger.

“Boosted the hell out of Charisma and Wisdom,” she said, giving me a wicked smile.

I snorted. “Yeah. I get smoother skin, and you turn into a supermodel. That sounds about right.”

Finn laughed. “Won’t hear me complaining.”

As I glanced at him, I laughed.

If I thought I needed a change of clothes, Finn’s shirt had split in two.

“Damn, Finn. You’re jacked!”

He just gave me a cocky smile and looked down at himself and grinned. “It should be illegal to be this gorgeous, I know.” His grin widened. “But yeah. Good thing we’re in the mall. I definitely need new clothes.”

“We can go after we figure out what the hell we’re going to do next,” I said.

My stomach growled again, despite having just eaten. I chalked it up to the physical increase I’d just gained, but I was ravenous like I hadn’t eaten for days. My stomach rumbled, and I tried to ignore it while I focused on what to do about the soldiers and Reynolds.

If Wise is to be believed, then this was something that Reynolds and Moore cooked up by themselves or with just a handful of others. I can’t imagine most of the soldiers I’ve met the last few days would willingly condone this.

Most of them seemed to be decent, honorable people. But the captain is going to be a problem. After killing his men, we’ll likely be declared persona non grata. I shrugged. So what? Reynolds tried to use us to slaughter innocents. Salvatore is right. There needs to be some swift retribution for that.

I was justifying my actions. I knew that. But he’d betrayed us, and I was furious at what I’d almost been a part of.

Reynolds is going to suffer for this.

The others were too absorbed in their conversation to notice the slight smirk I wore.

By the time Salvatore joined us, I’d worked out how I would go about getting what I was owed from Reynolds and how to solve the incoming retaliation from the military.

He might not like it, but I think it’s the best solution for long-term peace.

Salvatore sat down and opened a water bottle, chugging the contents as Clara came over with a tray filled with steaming bowls. She placed the tray in the center of the table and sat down beside me.

“Hungry?” she asked.

“Starved,” I replied and gladly took one of the bowls offered to me.

It was broth with hunks of ramen noodles steeping in the center. It wasn’t much, but it was hot, salty, and delicious. I greedily slurped up the noodles and drained the bowl.

Clara smiled as she watched me devour the food. “Did you enjoy it?”

“Yes, thank you. It was wonderful.”

She nodded and scooted closer to me, but I didn’t think it was in a flirtatious manner, more like she sought me because she felt safe around me. Clara didn’t get close enough to touch me, but enough that her body heat brushed against me.

I wasn’t uncomfortable with having her there and didn’t feel like it was worth mentioning, but someone else at the table misconstrued the situation and spoke up.

“I’d be careful, Clara. Killian’s girlfriend is one scary lady,” Finn said.

Her blush deepened, and she stammered. “I…that isn’t…I wasn’t─“

I held my hand up. “One. Don’t get her so worked up. And two. She’s not my girlfriend.”

“Keep telling yourself that, but you’re in denial, Kill.” Adeline smirked, a little light and life flickering in her eyes once more.

“Shut up.”

I crossed my arms, which just caused both Finn and Adeline to laugh.

Clara looked at my exasperated face to Adeline’s smirk and started laughing. “You three seem like you’re very close.”

“Yeah, we’ve been through hell together.”

Finn looked up with a mouthful of dripping noodles and spoke. “Speaking of,” he said, turning to me. “What’s our next move?”

“An excellent question, one that I would like answered as well,” Salvatore said, placing his arms on the table. “I’ll admit, I don’t have any ideas that don’t end in bloodshed.”

I sighed, hoping he might have had an alternative, but that’s not how life works.

Sometimes you have to choose the lesser of two evils.

The Devil, you know, well, I’m the only Devil I know, and this ends bloody either way.

I pushed away my bowl and laid my arms flat on the table. “Can you grab Wise for us?” I asked.

Salvatore nodded and stood. He walked over to the sergeant and quickly brought him over to the table.

As they both sat down, I reached over and shifted into Demon Form. I hooked a clawed finger through Wise’s zip cuffs and severed them with a swift flick.

He paled at the sight of me and stood very still as the plastic fell away.

“Killian. What─”

I dropped it and sat back. “Cards on the table, Wise. I’m the Demon Lord.”

“You’re…” He blew out a breath. “I don’t understand. You seemed like a good man.”

“I am. Or I used to be, at least. Can any one of us say that this game of Callisto’s has changed us for the better?” I held up a finger. “But who or what I am is irrelevant. I just needed you to know before we began.”

“Why?” he asked. “Why tell me something like that? What benefit does me knowing grant you?”

“Trust.” I blew out a breath. “What I’m about to propose is going to require some trust on both our parts. I told you because I believe you to be a good, honorable man. And I need you to extend a little faith that I’m not the monster you might think I am. Can you do that?”

Wise placed his hands on the table and drummed his fingers on the plastic. He stared at me for a long moment. Eventually, he sighed and nodded.

“I don’t know. But I can at least hear you out.”

I nodded. “It’ll have to be enough for now.” I turned to the others. “Alright. I think we can all agree that this falls on Captain Reynolds?”

“Agreed,” Salvatore said.

“Wise?”

He sighed, but nodded. “Yes. This should have never happened. But Captain Reynolds is at the center of it. I can’t argue that. Not after what happened.”

“Then he dies,” I said. “It’s retribution for the lives he robbed today.”

Wise held his hand up. “But─”

“No.” I shook my head. “He tried to use us to murder survivors. He dies. This isn’t up for discussion.”

“What you’re talking about is mutiny. Even if it works, what comes after? The command structure has been crumbling since we lost Major Becker. If Reynolds dies, it collapses.”

I nodded. “That’s where Salvatore and his men come into the equation.” I glanced at Salvatore. “How do you feel about an alliance between your group and the military?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s only been a month, but in this hellscape, that’s a lot of time, and there’s a lot of bad blood between us. It’d be rocky at best, hostile at worst.”

“Not if Wise took command.” I turned to him. “From what I can see, you have the respect of the soldiers. You could keep order and work to bridge the divide between both groups.”

“It’s possible. I guess. If Reynolds isn’t in command and with most of his loyalists now dead…it’s possible.”

I placed my hands on the table. “Alright. Then unless anyone has any better ideas, this is the one we go with?”

Salvatore nodded. “It’s certainly better than an all-out war between us. If we can work together, then both groups will become stronger as a result.”

Good. Now to go and throw a wrench into everything we just agreed on.

“Okay. With that settled, there’s one more item on the agenda.” I sighed and glanced at Salvatore. “This flies in the face of the plan I just laid out, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least make the offer.”

His eyes narrowed. “What offer?”

“Join me. Become one of my pieces.”

He froze at my words. Salvatore sighed and rested his chin under his hands, lost in thought. He stayed there for a few moments, and I couldn’t blame him for that. It was a lot to take in and not something to accept lightly.

“You just had to go and complicate things, didn’t you?” He stood. “Join you? We may have fought together, may be working together, but I still haven’t decided yet if it’s worth trying to kill you just to save the world.”

“You don’t have the whole story. I can’t deny that my ultimate goal is to destroy the world.” I held up a hand as his mouth opened. “Would you let me finish? Yes, I know how that sounds, but that isn’t the be-all-end-all. My mission is to destroy the world, but I’ll be granted a wish once I do. Callisto promised me that I could set the world to rights again. Make it so this whole nightmare never happened.”

Several long seconds of silence seemed to stretch for hours as I waited for his response. I let him think while I set up part two. I bowed my head for a moment and closed my eyes.

I feel stupid for doing this, but Callisto, are you there?

“Heya, Killian, what can I do for you?”

I need my pieces.

He chuckled in my head. “Found another candidate already? I approve.” He paused. “And, yes. If he accepts, I can give you your pieces. Though I should bill you for the long-distance call.”

Bite me. Oh, wait, you can’t!

A short laugh was his reply before his voice died down and left me. During my brief lapse, Salvatore had yet to reach a decision, still staring at the table like it would jump and bite him if he looked away.

Wise shook his head. “Such a strange concept. Saving the world by destroying it? It seems like a cruel joke.” He held up his hand, motioning to me. “Putting someone like you at the forefront of this madness. Why not someone malicious or evil? There are plenty of those in the world. Why a good kid like you?”

I shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

Salvatore sighed. “I guess I’m supposed to just trust what you say is the truth, your truth at any rate.”

“Believe it or not. It makes little difference to me what you believe. You believing me isn’t what I need from you. You joining me is.”

Salvatore pointed a finger at me. “It’s not that simple, and you know it. This is the end of the world we’re talking about, and I’m supposed to trust that you’re a good guy?”

I held my hands up, gesturing around me. “Have I given you any reason to doubt me so far?”

“No. No, you haven’t, but still─“

“Brother, just accept already. I trust them, even if you don’t. Killian risked his life to save me, and he personally carried me out of the darkness. If he’s telling the truth and his real goal is saving the world, then he’s going to need your help.”

He looked from me to Clara and sighed. “Perhaps you’re right,” he said. “I don’t want to trust you, but you’ve given me no justification for that. You’ve proven yourself trustworthy in the short time I’ve known you. And you saved my sister’s life. That isn’t something I can just brush off. I owe you a debt greater than I can repay for that.

“But I can’t abandon my people. Especially now.”

“You wouldn’t be. They’d be in safe hands with Wise in command.”

Salvatore was about to speak, but Clara stood up. “He gratefully accepts.”

“What?” he nearly shouted.

Clara shook her head. “Go with them, brother. This is bigger than us here, and you know it.”

“But what about you?”

She smiled. “I’ll be fine. I can take care of things here, so don’t you worry.”

“But─”

“Or do you think your sister is incapable of leading everyone here?”

Salvatore stared her down for all of three seconds before he deflated and sat back at the table. “No, you’ll probably do a better job than me anyway.”

“Excellent,” she replied.

Salvatore looked at me and nodded. “Then I guess I’ve no choice but to accept your offer.”

I smiled. “Good. Callisto, I need you.”

Salvatore and Clara gasped as I said his name and stared at me wide-eyed before Callisto appeared in the open seat at the table.

He gave me a cheeky grin. “My, my. Killian, summoning me as bold as you please. Assertive is a good look on you, my Demon Lord.”

“Holy shit!” Clara yelped.

Callisto laughed and grabbed for her ramen, twirling the noodles around the fork and plopping the mass into his mouth, only for his teeth to pass right through it. “Dammit, one of these days, I’ll be able to eat something.”

“Told you so,” I said, snickering.

Both Clara and Salvatore stared at the god in shock, to which he grinned. “What, something on my face?”

“Your eyes…”

“Aren’t they pretty?” Callisto asked, the suns in his gaze lighting up in humor. “Now, why don’t we get down to the reason I’m here? I have other business elsewhere that needs my attention.”

“So, that’s Callisto?” Finn asked, staring at the god just as the others were.

I chuckled. “Oh right, you haven’t met him yet. But what’s with the wide-eyed look? You’ve met the literal Incarnation of Death. Surely this isn’t any stranger?”

“Wait, wind that back. The Incarnation of what now?” Clara asked, staring at me.

Callisto frowned, and I hastily waved her off.

“We’ve gotten off-topic, and pissing off a god is a great way to ruin all of our lives, trust me. Hear me out, and we can talk later.”

Salvatore looked at me. “Okay, what’s next?”

“Callisto. My pieces.”

He smirked and waved his hand. The black leather briefcase appeared out of nowhere and fell to the table with a dull thud.

I snagged it, opening it and pulling out the Rook piece. It glittered, lighting up with a galaxy inside it as I slid it across the table to him. “This is one of my vicious pieces. It confers a new class to you, I don’t know what, but it’s almost a certainty that it’s going to be significantly stronger than your current one.”

Salvatore reached for it almost immediately, but I quickly pulled it out of his reach.

“You need to be absolutely certain before you accept, though. Once you take it, you’ll be part of my team, and there’s no going back.” I paused. “This isn’t something I, or Clara, or anyone else can decide for you. It has to be your choice.”

Callisto looked down at a nonexistent watch and tapped his wrist. “Time’s ticking. I have places to be, so decide now.”

Salvatore huffed. “I already made my choice.” He grinned as he picked up the Rook. “Alright, Demon Lord. Let’s save the world.”

The piece vanished in his hand, and he went wide-eyed. “Woah, that’s a rush.” Salvatore grew quiet for a long moment. “Interesting. Seems there are some things I need to settle before we can leave. And I need to catch Clara up on everything if she’s taking over for me.” He motioned to us. “All of your clothes could definitely use an upgrade. Why don’t the three of you go shopping while I take care of business here?”

I nodded. “That sounds great, actually.”

Finn laughed and picked at his torn shirt. “Good. Because my shirt wasn’t the only thing to rip, and it’s getting a bit breezy, if you catch my drift.”

“Too much info, buddy,” I replied as we stood.

As the three of us got up, so did Wise. He turned to us. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to take my men and head back to Fort Alexander. I’ll see if I can prime a few of the men close to me about what’s going to happen.”

Salvatore grimaced. “You have a choice here, Wise. You have a chance to save lives. I’d recommend not crossing us.”

He shook his head. “I won’t. I’ve made my peace with things. And I can see the brighter future that’s on the horizon. I want that for us.”

Salvatore nodded, and Wise went to collect his men while Finn, Adeline, and I went hunting for some fresh clothes.

Finn and Adeline went off on their own, and I let them. Adeline still wasn’t a hundred percent back to herself yet, so I let them have their space.

I went and picked a few of the lesser looted stores at random and found some fresh clothes in one of the outlets next to a donut shop and café. I tried to find some clothes in my size and was mostly successful. They were nothing flashy, but a clean T-shirt and a gray and black button-up did wonders to make me feel a little back to normal again. I threw them on under my Kevlar vest and jacket.

After I’d changed, I stored a pack of white undershirts and underwear still in the plastic in my bag and then went to ransack the shoe store to find a better pair of boots.

By the time I’d gotten dressed in my new clothes and got back to the food court, it appeared that the already dwindling number of survivors had thinned even further. The rest were bustling about with Clara ordering them.

“Where did everyone else go?” I asked.

“Some of the men weren’t happy about having to report to Clara and left, but most stayed. They know she’ll be a good leader.”

I nodded, smiling as I held out my hand. “Well, it’s good to have you on the team.”

He shook it, returning the grin. “Thanks. It’s strange playing for the villain’s team, even if we are trying to save the world.”

I laughed. “Tell me about it. I’m all for roleplaying the bad guy in video games, but this is a bit extreme, even for me.” My eyes widened. “Speaking of evil, what’s your new class, and what level did it drop you to?”

Salvatore snorted. “It’s called Graveling, and as luck or fate would have it, it isn’t entirely dissimilar to Acrobat. It dropped me back to level eleven but gave me a few new skills for the trouble. They’re called Bridge, which seems to be a teleport skill, Without a Trace, which hides my presence until I run out of mana, and Point Blank, a passive skill that gives me a boost to my Strength and Agility whenever I’m within three feet of an opponent.”

I whistled. “Damn, I’m kind of jealous. Sounds pretty badass.”

He grinned, despite the situation, the fever of battle alight in his eyes. “Seems I’m your new personal assassin.”

Salvatore and I talked some more while we watched Clara boss people around with deadly precision.

I smiled.

Yeah, she’s going to be just fine on her own, especially once we deal with the military.

The plan was very loose, but Clara and the other survivors wouldn’t have to worry about anything but the occasional monster if it worked out.

When Clara’s men were off getting everything ready, she came and sat down beside me.

“Good work,” I said.

“Thanks.” She beamed. “Will you come back and visit?”

I rubbed the back of my head and nodded. “As often as we can, but that might be a while. There are a lot of things we have to do, but I promise we’ll make an effort.”

The three of us talked about the future while we waited on Finn and Adeline. It took them another half hour to come back, but when they did, I smiled wide.

Adeline had a smile of her own on her face and was laughing at something Finn had said. It did my heart good to see her smile and hear her laugh.

“Hey, Kill. Check out what I found.”

She tossed a small plastic box to me, and I caught it and groaned. “Leave it to you to find what could be the last hair dye in the apocalypse. More blue, I see.”

“Also got a bunch of other colors too.” She laughed. “Figure I’d better stock up before all the roving biker gangs and drug fiends get a hold of them. Finn’s going to help me re-dye it when we get the time.”

I laughed. “Should dye his hair pink, take away some of that pretty boy confidence.”

“Hey!” Finn shouted with fake indignation and came over to rib me in the side. “You hoping some of my charms might rub off on you, Kill? Sorry, it doesn’t work like that, Hermano. But you got that goth gloom lord look down pat. Some chicks dig that.”

“Gee, thanks.”

We all burst out laughing, and it was good. It took our minds off what we were about to do.

But our little slice of happiness quickly faded, and I knew that I was just stalling for time. I stood and wiped the smile from my face.

“Alright, guys, it’s game time. Let’s get moving.”

Twenty minutes later, we had everything we needed cleared out of the mall and were back outside. The APC we’d arrived in would have gotten us back to base safely, but the steering wheel key was nowhere to be found.

“Ah hell, looks like we’re walking.”

We kept a brisk pace as we went through the city, even though we spotted several Carnival Beasts along the rooftops. Salvatore took aim at one, but it just scampered off out of sight, and from then on, none of them came close to us. They left us alone, and we returned the favor, one that I was relieved for. I didn’t want to waste time fighting monsters.

Dawn was breaking by the time we arrived back. We’d only been away for a few hours, but it felt like days. And what I knew was to come only made me want to crawl into bed and never leave.

With a heavy sigh, Finn spoke to the intercom and let us in.

Captain Reynolds was back at his workstation in the bunker when we arrived.

He looked up at us and then to Salvatore with wide eyes before clearing his throat and motioning us to follow him to his office. I shut the door as soon as we stepped inside and closed the blinds.

This was a meeting no one else needed to see.

Reynolds couldn’t fail to notice my demeanor as I dropped the blinds, and even with my back turned to him, the subtle scrape of wood as he opened a drawer was just barely audible.

Reynolds kept his hands hidden from us.

He knows something's up and is ready for us. I won’t have time to discuss anything before he draws. Gonna have to make this fast.

“Why don’t you sit down and tell me how the mission went?” he asked loudly, trying to cover up the click of him cocking the hammer back of the pistol he had under the desk, but I was listening for it and shifted in an instant.

My Demon Form was faster than Reynolds could react, and before he could move his arm, I had him by the throat, pushed up against the painted white cement wall.

With a snap, I broke his wrist and took his revolver from him. Reynolds went pale at my black eyes and horns, which were an inch from his face. My face reflected in his irises. I looked like a devil.

I squeezed tight, cutting off his airflow, letting him choke. “Yes, we really need to have a chat.”

Chapter 22- Change in Management

Reynolds’s breath caught in his chest at my transformation, and he panicked, railing against my strength as I slowly crushed his windpipe.

Fury reflected from his glassy eyes, and my blood boiled. Reynolds choked, gasping as the last of his breath faded, and I enjoyed the pain and panic in his eyes.

His eyes rolled back in his head. I dropped him.

Reynolds fell on the floor with a thud and spent several long seconds catching his breath. When he could finally control his breathing, he clutched at his broken wrist and looked at me with palpable fear.

“What are you?”

“A serious problem for you,” I said and hauled him up by the collar of his uniform, knocking his captain’s pin free in the process. “You sent us to kill innocents.”

His look of denial was plain on his face, and I knew the words that were about to leave his mouth as soon as he opened it, giving me a glimpse of his coffee-stained teeth.

I shoved him back against the wall hard enough to knock the breath from him. “Don’t even try to deny it or justify it. You know exactly what you did!”

Finn tapped me on the shoulder. “Keep it down, Kill. These walls aren’t that thick. Don’t want trouble knocking at our door just yet, do you?”

He’s right. I’m getting too emotional about this.

I turned back to Reynolds, who looked like he was about to piss himself, and grinned at him. “This is your lucky day, though, Reynolds. Because I’m willing to forget about what you did.”

“You are?” he asked, wheezing.

“You are?” Salvatore asked.

“If you make it worth my while,” I said, letting go of him.

“You want the Humvee?” he guessed, standing back up and rubbing his neck while holding his broken hand by his side.

“That and so much more. You’re going to pay for what you tried to get us to do.” I held up my hand. “You’re going to give us supplies. Food, ammo, gas, and coins. Consider it payment for the quest you tried to trick us into completing.”

“And if I don’t?” he hedged.

I hopped up on the lip of the desk and sat, forcing my face to look calm and composed. “If you don’t, I slaughter everyone here and take what I want from your corpses.”

Reynolds glanced at me sideways, not entirely buying my words. “And that’s something you think you can do?”

Alright, showtime.

I hopped off his desk and stood over him. I plastered a malicious smile across my face as I peered down at him. “I’m the Demon Lord. Do you really think it’d be a challenge?”

He gulped, and realization took hold of his mind, dripping sweat down his forehead as he stared at my horns and my eyes, forming no other conclusion than that I was telling the truth.

“The…the Demon Lord…oh shit.”

I let Demon Form fade and returned to normal. As my horns retracted and my eyes faded away, Reynolds heaved a sigh of relief and nodded.

“Fine, I’ll give you what you asked for,” he said and moved to stand up, but I shoved him back down.

“Hell no, you’re staying here with me. Get First Sergeant Wise.”

“Why him?”

“Because I trust him. Finn?”

He nodded. “On it.”

Salvatore opened the door and stood to the side while Finn ran out and fetched Wise for us.

It took a few minutes, but he came back in with Wise and a taciturn middle-aged man with short salt and pepper hair.

“This is Quartermaster Franklin. He can get what you need.”

As soon as they arrived, Reynolds rattled off a list of supplies, including some extra boxes of ammo, rations, and over thirty gallons of gas on top of the full tank already in there. I was worried it wouldn’t be enough since New York was almost eight hundred miles away, but we probably didn’t have room for more than that.

After that, the quartermaster left, and Wise went to supervise. It took them just over an hour to get things ready for us, and I was frankly amazed that everything was going so smoothly.

When the quartermaster returned, he told us that everything was ready and then left. There was just one last thing I needed to take care of.

“And the coins?” I asked.

Reynolds sighed. “Take them, you monster.”

Trade Request!

2,000 Coins!

I accepted the request with a smile. “Thank you, Reynolds.”

Then I put a bullet in his head.

Blood splashed across his desk, soaking his keyboard and papers along with bits of brain and shards of skull.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Human): 42 Exp!

Experience Boost (25%): 11 Exp!

Total Gain: 53 Exp!

AC Earned: 2000!

As he died, a notification popped into existence.

Fort Alexander: Hardened Base

Fortification: 10

Threat Level: 5

Safe Zone: Active

Base Owner has died—Transfer of Ownership in Progress.

Do you Accept?

Y/N

Yes.

Transfer of Base Successful!

Contents of Hardened Base

1 Armory Vendor

1 Food Vendor

1 Vehicle Vendor

Treasury: 25,000 Apocalypse Coins

Base Buildings

1 Medical Ward

1 Armory

1 Mess Hall

15 Communication Hubs (Range Limited)

25 Barracks

25 Houses

4 Apartment Blocks

1 Vehicle Depot

Base Upgrades Available!

Base Building Slots: 5

Base Building List (+)

As I read through the notifications, I waved the screen away.

“Retribution,” I said, turning to Salvatore. “Good enough?”

He nodded. “I’d have liked to have ended his life myself, but yes. The scales are balanced.”

I nodded, and then a delicious thought came over me. Something that would make the transfer of power even smoother.

“Salvatore, go get Wise.”

“Got it.”

He left the room to get the sergeant, and I glanced down at the slowly pooling puddle of blood under the now-dead captain. I snagged a jacket from the coat hanger off to the side and threw it over his body before dragging it behind the desk and mostly out of sight.

When Salvatore returned fifteen minutes later with the sergeant in tow, I shut the door.

Wise’s gaze locked on the bloodstain on the floor and then they followed to Reynolds’s body. He gulped, then sighed, shaking his head. “Guess it had to come to this, didn’t it?”

I nodded. “It was necessary. Do you really think Reynolds would have worked with the survivors or even taken them in?”

“…No.”

“Okay. So, are you now the highest-ranked soldier here?”

Wise sighed and shook his head. “No. There are at least half a dozen lieutenants on base, but they’re so green they wouldn’t know their ass from a hole in the ground. If any of them were put in charge…it’d be chaos.”

I clapped and leaned against the desk. “Well, it’s a good thing the Army isn’t in charge anymore. Clara will be put in command with you backing her. For all intents and purposes, the military doesn’t exist anymore. If they had any control, the world wouldn’t be falling apart around us now. So I don’t care about rank or seniority. All I care about is making sure the people who are still alive stay that way. Got it?”

“Yeah.” Wise cracked a smile, some light returning to his dark eyes. “You’re really not what I was expecting for a Demon Lord.”

“I’ve been getting that a lot.”

I turned to Salvatore, Finn, and Adeline. “Alright. We’re going to bring in the survivors soon, but we need to have the base locked down before that happens.”

They nodded.

“Hard and loud?” Finn asked.

“I was thinking more swift and severe.” I motioned to Salvatore. “With your short-range teleport ability. We can overwhelm them quickly before anything happens.”

He grinned. “I’m itching to test it out.”

“Good. No kill shots. Disable if you have to, but let’s try not to create corpses if we can avoid it.” I glanced at Wise. “You ready for this? When the smoke settles, I’m going to need you to come in and calm everyone down. They trust you, so it’s better if it comes from you than any of us.”

He nodded. “I understand.”

“Good. Let’s give it a few minutes, so Demon Form can recharge, then we go.”

The countdown timer couldn’t tick by fast enough, and ten minutes later, it vanished, and I could use my skill.

“Alright.” I drew my pistol. “Let’s do this.”

After that, I strolled out of Reynolds’s office and into the main hub of the bunker.

A few soldiers were making the rounds, entered and exited the elevator. But most of the men were seated at workstations or bent over desks, furiously scribbling away.

As we approached, a few glanced up and then paled as they stared at me with wide, unblinking eyes. A few pulled weapons, but their movements were painfully slow in my demonic form, and they couldn’t react fast enough. I broke half a dozen wrists and shattered more than a few noses as I beat down those who stood in my way.

A soldier standing by the elevator with a rifle turned at the shouts of pain, his rifle raising.

The slightly muffled retort of my pistol split the air and took him in the kneecap. He fell to the ground with a shriek, dropping his rifle as blood poured from his shattered leg.

As the soldier dropped, several things happened all at once.

More than a few had quick enough reflexes and drew their sidearms.

Finn activated Abyssal Armor and barreled forward as the first shots rang out. He stood in front of Adeline and me as sharp cracks echoed and sparks arced off his armor. He raised his hand, and a gaping black hole appeared in front of Salvatore just as one soldier unloaded with a rifle. It glowed, pulsating with a silver light as the soldier fired far more than the thirty rounds he should’ve had in the gun.

Adeline raised her hands, and as they burst alight with crimson flames, she tossed them. Her blast of Conflagration landed just shy of the elevator, and it spread out in a circle, completely blocking the exit. She then turned toward the door that led to the armory as nearly a dozen soldiers rushed out with guns.

They raised their rifles, but before they could use Unload, Salvatore vanished. There was a slight flutter of a shadow, and then he was gone. He reappeared behind the soldiers, his twin pistols raised.

They barked in a nearly continuous stream of fury as Salvatore unleashed hell on the unsuspecting men.

His rounds took them all in the legs, and in a handful of seconds, he’d dropped most of them. One of the soldiers he couldn’t reach whipped around, and his rifle glowed silver.

Salvatore disappeared in a haze of shadow and then reappeared in front of the soldier. His entire body shimmered with a dark purple aura as he brought his hands up and batted the soldier’s rifle aside before slipping around him and wrapping him in a chokehold. Salvatore aimed at the few others he’d missed and took them out with pinpoint precision.

I’d told them to keep it non-lethal, and as a testament to Salvatore’s skills, every one of his shots had been aimed at legs, shoulders, or other non-vital areas.

It was damned impressive.

As the four of us stopped firing, the room grew quiet, save for the grunts of pain from the wounded. No one was expecting an attack, so most weren’t armed with anything serious.

Finn strolled forward in his Abyssal Armor while Adeline lit up both hands with fire, blatantly showing off to instill even more fear, while Salvatore used Bridge to teleport around the room and retrieve all the weapons in under a minute.

All in all, it took less than two minutes from start to finish, and we had the entire bunker locked down.

I canceled Demon Form and drew my SMG to keep anyone from trying anything.

But that wasn’t necessary as Wise walked out and started barking orders at the soldiers who hadn’t been wounded.

“Mendez, Kilpatrick! Grab the med kits! Make sure no one’s going to bleed out before their healing can kick in.” When everyone just stared at the towering man, slack-jawed, his face screwed up into a dark fury. “Now!”

His voice reverberated through my soul, and I had to fight not to take a step back on reflex. The rest of the soldiers weren’t so lucky. Some of them nearly jumped out of their skins, and instantly there was a bustle of activity as the men leapt into motion.

Damn! He’s got the drill sergeant's voice down to a science.

As everyone worked, he raised his voice again. “Listen up! Johnson, don’t you dare stop working!” He sighed. “A lot’s happened in the last few hours, none of it good…”

I turned and let Wise catch his men up to speed while I saw to Finn, Adeline, and Salvatore.

“Can you go and gather the survivors?” I asked Salvatore.

He nodded. “Of course, but it’ll take a couple of hours to bring everyone over. Can you handle things here?”

I thumbed back to the First Sergeant. “With Wise? Yeah. We got this.”

He nodded and vanished.

With Wise relaying the change in management that was going on and what would be happening in the next few hours, I walked off and headed for Reynolds’s office. I shut the door behind me and took a seat in one of the chairs at the desk.

For a moment, I did nothing, not even breathe. Then I let out a shaky breath as my hands trembled. I knew I could justify Reynolds’s death. I’d given him plenty of reasons to play fair, but that’s all I was doing, justifying.

I told myself that I was fine, but I was just cold. Numb. I could convince myself that I’d killed him for the right reasons, but it was all bullshit. I’d killed him because I wanted to, because he tried to hurt my friends and me, and I wanted to hurt him back for that. I shook my head. In the end, my motivations didn’t matter.

He was dead. That was all that mattered.

My decision had ultimately been the right one. Everything else didn’t matter, and dwelling on it would just waste time. I could deal with them later, but I busied myself with the base management system for the moment.

I could upgrade and expand the base if I wanted with the coins in the treasury, but I held off. I wouldn’t be the one taking command of the base, so it wasn’t my call.

There’s a ton of coins as well. I could take them all. It’d give me one hell of an advantage. I sighed, knowing that I couldn’t do that. These people will need the coins. I can’t leave Clara and the others vulnerable.

But that didn’t mean I couldn’t take some of them.

In the end, I took half. It was more than I initially wanted, but I knew I needed them, and twelve thousand coins were still plenty enough for Clara to do whatever she wanted with the base.

I’d earned quite a bit of coin recently. The money Reynolds had in his possession was more than I was expecting. Even after the two thousand coins he transferred to me. He’d had two thousand more on him.

My wallet was looking rather large now.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 20,800 Coins

Food: 14 Day’s Supply

Water: 14 Day’s Supply

Status Effects

[Well-Fed] +10% Constitution

[Well-Rested] +5%

[Flush x4] -20% Vendor Prices

Ammo

.45 ACP: 190 Rounds

Additional Items

Field Trauma Kit (High Grade): 9/10 Uses

Gauze and Tape: 4/5 Uses

“Not bad. But it’s probably not enough to get us to New York,” I muttered to myself.

We definitely need to stock up on more ammo, just in case, but where will we put it? Carrying around my duffel and satchel is already getting tiresome. And adding more food and ammo will only slow us down. Maybe I should hold off for now.

By the time I’d sorted out the base and took stock of my inventory, Salvatore had returned with Clara and the other survivors in tow.

I stood from the desk and went to talk to Clara, who, along with Wise, would be the base's leader going forward.

She smiled as she turned and walked over to me, hopping up on the former captain’s desk.

“I almost didn’t think you could do it. Take over the whole base. But you did, and without any needless casualties.” She laughed. “It’d be impressive for anyone else, but you’re the Demon Lord. So, of course, you could do it.”

I chuckled. “I think you’re giving me too much credit.” I looked around the room at them, moving their supplies into the base with some of the soldiers and Wise supervising. “What’s your plans going forward?”

She sighed. “Giving the soldiers a choice. I haven’t talked to the sergeant yet, but I understand this is a lot to process. I figure giving the soldiers the same choice I gave our people is only fair. They can stay and help us build something that can outlast this nightmare, or they can leave. That’s the best deal I can offer them.

“As for long term. I figure once we get things sorted out, we can start taking back the city. Make it a safe zone for everyone.”

“Ambitious.” I grinned. “Well, I have no doubt that you will be able to pull it off.” I held out my hand to her.

She took it immediately and smiled wide.

Base Transfer of Ownership in Progress

Clara accepted with wide eyes as the management screen appeared in front of her.

“Good luck, Clara. I expect great things from you.”

She hopped off the desk and wrapped her arms around me. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.” She pulled back. “Please take good care of my brother.”

I nodded. “I promise.”

Then she left, off to start getting things under control.

I had no doubt she could handle things, and while I wanted to stay and see how things progressed, we had places to be.

Wise came up to me before we left and held out his hand. “The Humvee and all the supplies are waiting for you topside. Thank you, Killian.” He smiled. “My first instinct about you seems to be the right one. You’re a good man.” He gestured around the base. “Some of the others don’t understand, but I think deep down, most of the men here knew something wasn’t quite right about Reynolds. It’ll take some time, but with Clara and the other survivors, I think we’ll be able to make this place a haven for the citizens of Grissom and beyond.”

“I look forward to seeing your progress, Wise.”

We shook hands, and then I headed back to Finn and Adeline. As I approached, the three of us shared a look.

“You guys ready to get the hell out of here?” I asked.

Adeline smirked. “Best thing I’ve heard all day.”

As we were leaving, I motioned to Salvatore, who was talking with Clara, and caught his eye. I pointed up, and he nodded.

With that, the three of us packed up and left.

The sun shone brightly as we stepped outside. The gate was open, and our Humvee sat outside, waiting for us. It was blocky and green. One of the older models, and this one wasn’t equipped with a turret on the top, which I was a little disappointed about, but I wasn’t going to complain. I wanted to get on the road and didn’t care much about sticking around and arguing over trivialities.

We climbed in the Humvee. Finn at the wheel with Ade riding shotgun. I hopped into the back, and we waited for Salvatore. I sank back in the seat as Finn started the Humvee. The engine growled up a storm and idled for a long moment.

Then the back passenger door opened, and Salvatore climbed in, stowing his bag at his feet.

“Everyone ready to leave?” I asked.

“Yeah,” Salvatore said.

“Good,” Finn replied.

The tires spun as he peeled out as fast as he could and put us on a course for the highway.

Chapter 23- Eastbound and Down

We were all quiet as we left the city. I thought we would have difficulty leaving and the piled-up and abandoned cars would make going through the city a major pain. But after we pulled onto the highway, there were virtually no cars.

Once we were in the clear, Finn gunned it and pushed the Humvee as fast as it could go.

Adeline and Finn quickly got into a logistics discussion as Finn drove. Both were trying to decide how many hours it would take to reach New York. I joined in and asked how long they thought it would take.

“Before the apocalypse, twelve hours or so, but I have no idea on how the roads will look as we get further out. I bet we run into a lot of abandoned cars as we go.”

“So, ballpark it for me, worst case. How long?”

Finn scratched at his chin with one hand while keeping the other on the wheel. “Hmm, three days, worst case. I don’t think we have enough gas to get us all the way there. So, we’ll have to scavenge some along the way. Plus, I don’t want to drive during the night, so we’ll have to stop tonight anyway.”

Adeline and Finn went back and forth on that topic for a while longer, but I tuned them out and watched the scenery go by. It was peaceful out here, almost like the apocalypse wasn’t going on at all.

I wonder if there are parts of the country untouched by all this madness. Maybe a few, perhaps. But I quickly shut down that line of thought. Even if there are sections of the world where life is normal, I can’t be a part of that. There’s too much at stake for me to give up now. All the blood on my hands will mean nothing if I just pack it in.

I’d made my choice, accepted my role, and I couldn’t waver in that.

Even if internally I was struggling to come to terms with that.

I was left with my thoughts as the miles wore on and the day dwindled into night.

When it became too dark to continue driving without headlights, we stopped for the day. We got off the interstate as soon as possible and found the first unoccupied house that looked moderately defensible.

It was a charming white colonial two-story with faux marble pillars and a bay window on the second story. Finn parked the Humvee around the side, and we all got out to check on things. After sitting for so long, I was relieved to be able to stretch my limbs.

I walked a few feet around to the front of the house and peered into one of the windows. Empty. There weren’t any signs of life in the house. Finn and Ade had their guns out, looking around, and Salvatore’s fingers twitched next to his pistol.

I stepped up onto the porch, which creaked as I put my weight on it and caused everyone to turn. They relaxed when their lights shone on me, but a ruffle of cloth made them tense again.

“You can relax. There’s no one here,” Death said with a smile as she leaned back in one of the chairs on the porch.

Finn and Ade jumped at her voice but calmed themselves when they realized who it was, but this was the first time Salvatore was meeting Death, and he understandably freaked out about a sudden new voice. He knelt, drew both pistols, and bared down on her.

“Killian, move!”

“Calm down, Sal. She’s a friend.”

“Sal?” he asked after deliberating on whether he should lower his weapons. After some brief thought, he did and stood.

I shrugged. “Your name is long, and everyone here has a nickname. It seems only fitting you do too.”

Salvatore chuckled and thrust his chin at Death. “So, who is she?”

“Ah, how rude of me,” Death said and stood from the chair in a single smooth motion, almost gliding over to stand beside me. She bowed her head and curtsied. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Death.”

Salvatore just stared at her with a neutral expression for a moment before smiling. "Scary lady, indeed.” He inclined his head to her. “A pleasure, Lady Death, may your souls always find their way back home.”

Death beamed and nudged me with her elbow. “At least someone in your party can show proper respect.”

I snorted. “Well, after using the Incarnation of Death as a body pillow, it seems the whole deferential awe thing kind of went out the window.”

She laughed and leaned on me, winding her arm through mine. “That’s a fair point.” She giggled and turned to the others. “I’ve already claimed the master bedroom upstairs, but there’s plenty of room for everyone.”

The others laughed, and Adeline stepped forward. “Well, let’s go check out our new digs.”

As we stepped inside, a notification appeared in front of us.

Assign 864 Holland St. as [Temporary Home]

Cost: 10 Coins

Y/N

Yes.

864 Holland St.

Fortification Level: 8

Newburn City Threat Level: 5

Safe Zone: Active

I had the money to spare, so I gladly dropped the coins for a safe zone and the Well-Rested buff.

The others fanned out with their guns drawn, even with the safe zone and Death’s assurances. I trusted her and didn’t bother to sweep the house, but Finn and Salvatore did while Ade looked around and picked her bedroom.

I was stiff and tired from the drive and just wanted a hot shower and to sleep, to forget this day had ever happened. I left the others to their own devices as Death and I found the master bedroom.

It was decorated with modern furniture that was supposed to look like antiques, but I could tell it wasn’t. The bed was a king with a soft white comforter and nearly a dozen pillows arranged in an organized line. There was also a door that led to the attached balcony, but I didn’t even bother. Instead, I dropped my gear and headed straight for the bathroom.

It was huge, easily the size of my old room, and where the bedroom tried to aim for old-world grand elegance, the bathroom was all high-end modern appliances and a shower-bathtub combination that looked like it could fit four people and still have room for more.

I knelt by the side of the tub and turned the water on. Instantly, there was hot water without even needing to warm up first. I also noticed small black circles spaced out around the tub.

Water jets? Interesting.

I was eager to relax for a moment and stripped before quickly climbing in.

The water wasn’t scalding, but it was close, and I sighed in bliss. The faucet also poured a metric ton of water every second, and the tub filled in under a minute with steaming water. I dunked my head under and brushed my waterlogged hair out of my face before sitting back.

“Can I join you?” Death asked from the doorway.

After everything that had happened, my reticence for keeping her at arm’s length was rapidly crumbling, and I nodded before I realized what I was doing.

She stepped forward and slipped off her dress before bending down and removing her panties, leaving them in a pile next to my clothes. Death unabashedly let me drink her in as she sauntered forward and stepped into the bath.

The water came up to her shoulders as she leaned back into my chest and pulled my arms around her waist. Death used the crook of my neck as a pillow and sighed with contentment as the hot water rushed over her.

“So, tell me what happened?” she asked. “Death clings to you like a shroud.”

I sighed and opened my mouth, bearing the whole truth to her and leaving nothing out because I knew she wouldn’t condemn me for what I did. There wasn’t a single second of judgment in her eyes. She turned back around and leaned against me.

“You did what you had to, but you know that. You don’t need to seek absolution from me to know that what you did in your heart was just.”

“That’s the problem. I’ve accepted it, and I don’t regret the lives I took.” I shook my head, recalling the twisted satisfaction I’d felt when ending Reynolds’s life. Some part of me had enjoyed his death. And that was the problem. “I’ve already started down a dangerous path. And it’s one I can’t come back from.”

Death shifted, twisting around to kneel between my legs. She held my cheek in her palm. “I think you are under the delusion that people are either good or they’re evil. That has never been true for a single human since your race crawled up from primordial chaos. Humans will do good, and they will do evil. It’s in your nature. You can’t control it. But as long as your good outweighs your evil, I think you can consider yourself a good person.”

“But doesn’t being a good person matter? Isn’t that what I should be striving for?”

She shrugged. “If that is how you wish to live your life, then yes. But I think that you’re worrying about the wrong things. You may commit immoral actions, but you could never be evil. It isn’t who you are.”

“Isn’t who I am? You say that like you know me.” I chuckled, but it was cold and bitter. “How could you possibly know me when I don’t even know myself?

“After everything that’s happened to me? The more I think about it, the more I realize that I don’t know who I am. I don’t know what I stand for. What I believe in. I thought I knew, once. I thought I stood for something, but all I’ve done since I accepted the mantle and stepped out into this world is prove everything I thought I knew wrong.

“I’m a liar. A thief. A killer.” I scoffed. “I’m the Demon Lord. That’s all that Killian Dunn amounts to anymore. An unwanted title. And a goal that isn’t mine.”

Death shook her head and stood. As water sluiced off her ashen skin, she smiled, and her silver eyes glistened. “Then allow me to show you who you are. Who you’ve always been.”

There was a lingering ache in my chest, and as her eyes held me, I couldn’t look away. I took her hand as she pulled me up and led me out of the bath.

We both disregarded the fact that we were naked and dripping water as we climbed into bed. Her hands wrapped around me and held me. Death pulled me close and moved slowly, her breathing labored as she laid my head on her chest.

“Let me show you the Killian you’ve forgotten. The man I fell in love with. Let me give you back a piece of your life that I stole away. Let me make you whole again.”

“I thought you didn’t want me to know?”

She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter what I wanted. You were right.” She smiled. “You usually are. It is your life, your memories. And I can’t treat you like a plaything, not when you mean everything to me.”

Her hand went to my temple, and an indescribable rush fell over me. It was as if my mind had been full of holes, and Death poured hot water into my head to plug them. Warmth spread through me, and my head pounded as everything came back to me all at once.

It was so much.

Too much.

Way too much.

Years of memories and dreams came back to me instantly, and I couldn’t comprehend them. But as I opened my eyes and winced even in the dim light that spilled in from the bathroom, I knew one immutable fact.

As I stared into Death’s eyes, I knew I loved her. I knew it as surely as I knew how to breathe.

I’d just forgotten for a time.

But as the influx of information continued, my mind buckled under the strain and then went blank. I didn’t fall asleep, but I wasn't awake either. It was some dissociative fugue state between the two.

Death wasn’t next to me, but her warmth was, and her phantom touch squeezed my hand. Her voice filled my head and soothed my chaotic thoughts.

“Easy, darling. I’m sorry. So many memories and experiences at once were too much for you. Let’s start slowly and go through them one at a time.”

Slowly, a light blossomed in front of me and gradually brightened the room. I was viewing it as a spectator, and it was incredibly strange because I was looking at myself when I was younger.

My hair was quite lighter instead of my now nearly black brown. My eyes were also a startling sapphire, so much sharper than the pale blue they were now. It was surreal to see myself as a child of no more than four or five.

“This is one of my favorites,” Death said from behind me. “It’s the night we met.”

I was lying on the floor of our house. The furniture and layout were different from how it was now, but it was the same house I grew up in. Except everything was through the eyes of a child. The furniture was comically large and the colors too bright. I was playing with some toys when a stranger walked in the front door.

It was Death, but she was different. She was much older than the girl I’d come to know, mid-thirties or so. Her hair was also much longer, a soft blonde that was tied back in a ponytail. She wore a black button-up with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of dark wash jeans with biker boots.

Death looked around in confusion for a second and muttered under her breath. ”Right house, wrong person.”

She turned to leave, but child me noticed her and called out.

”Pretty,” younger me said.

Death stopped, turning to smile at me. ”Why, thank you.” Her smile deepened. “What’s your name?”

”I’m Killian,” he said, but he pronounced it Kiwwian.

I laughed. ”I had the hardest time with l’s.”

Death knelt with a wide grin. ”It’s nice to meet you, Killian.”

Before she could stand back up, younger me reached out and grabbed her hair and stared at it like it was the most amazing thing in the world.

”Pretty,” he repeated.

”What’s your favorite color?” she asked.

Young me stopped and pondered that like she’d asked who killed Kennedy. After a few seconds of thought, he shouted. “Purple!”

Death’s hair changed then, darkening from her bright blonde to the soft lilac she wore today.

“Better?”

Little me giggled and clapped. “Pretty magic!”

Death laughed, and then abruptly stopped, staring off into space. “I have to go, Killian. Goodbye!”

“Will you come back and play?”

She paused, conflicted for a moment, before she smiled and nodded. “Sure.”

Then she vanished.

The dream faded after that, leaving us in a plain white room.

“I kept my promise and visited when I could, but as an age-appropriate playmate for you,” Death said.

She showed me dozens of dreams that played like a sped-up movie; A younger version of Death appeared, the same age as younger me, and the two of them played.

Over and over and over again.

“At first, I told myself that I would visit you once a month, but in less than a year, it was once a week, and before I knew it, I was spending almost every night with you.”

The scenes changed. I grew up, and so did Death, mimicking my age as close as she could from children to adolescents and finally teenagers. I was a thin, gangly kid, but Death was all grace and ethereal beauty.

“As you got older, we could have conversations in your dreams. We talked about whatever was going on in your life at the time, so many different human things that I never got to experience, or had forgotten,” she said with a smile in her voice. “Those were good years.

“Adeline asked me once before if I saw you as a child, and I hope this reaffirms what I said.” Death laughed. “You are one of the few humans I’ve ever interacted with, and by far the one I’ve spent the most time with. In fact, you could quite literally say that I grew up with you.”

I laughed, seeing the truth of that unfolding before my very eyes.

The scenes kept shifting, constantly changing. My house, a jungle, city ruins, and even a desert. The bleached white bones of a giant monster peered up through the desert sand. All of them surreal and distorted. But the two of us were constant as the dreams passed by. So many more, hundreds. Thousands.

More than a decade of memories.

All of Death.

All that I’d forgotten.

It was of a me that I didn’t remember. And it all came flooding back as the two of us strolled through the dreams as if we were walking in the park. I had the look of a dopey-eyed sap as I held hands with Death.

“I think we both knew we were in love at that point. But falling in love with a mortal. A human? It came with its own complications, and as you grew older, I had to visit less because I was forced to take more and more of your dreams each time.

“And then one day, when your memories were gone, you found someone else.”

A girl appeared in my mind’s eye. She was gorgeous, but it was a down-to-earth beauty. She had long wavy brown hair, a kind face, and the most beautiful green eyes I’d ever seen.

“Rebecca.”

My first real girlfriend, but as I realized now, not my first love.

Death had always been my very first love.

“Yes. I hated it, but it was my own fault it happened. So, I couldn’t say anything. When you two fell in love, I left you for over a year and let you forget all about me.”

I sighed as the memories of Rebecca faded. I hoped she was safe, or at least not suffering.

“She’s alive, if you were curious,” Death said, seemingly reading my mind.

“Is she safe?”

“Relativity. But that’s all I can say.”

I heaved a sigh of relief. “Good.”

Death kissed my cheek. “I know how much you cared for her and how heartbroken you were when she moved. I left you alone, but I was never far away. You were so sad, and I didn’t want you to suffer. I always gave your memories back when I came. But this time was different. I comforted you as you cried on my shoulder, and then I kissed you. It was our first kiss.”

More dreams began playing as we continued. Death and I as we were now, going on numerous dates in my dreams. We were both happy, and I smiled. I liked how I looked then.

“But what happened after? That doesn’t seem to be so long ago.”

“It wasn’t, but Callisto found you and chose you for the mantle. I couldn’t interfere. I was forced to take every single one of your memories and let you completely forget about me. I had no choice.”

The dreams faded then, and the darkness returned before I found myself back in bed with Death next to me.

I leaned over and brushed her lips in a quick kiss. “So that leads to now.”

She nodded. “As soon as I got the chance to be in your life again, I took it. I wanted to see if you would come to love me on your own without your memories, but I didn’t realize how much of you had been tied to the memories we shared. I’d essentially stolen a third of your life from you, and for that, I’m truly sorry.”

I couldn’t deny that I was upset at what had been taken from me. The person who I saw in those dreams was a version of me that I liked, but with the memories returned to me, we were now two different people trying to fuse into one. I didn’t know what it meant, but I was now no longer the same person I’d been an hour before, but I also wasn’t the same person Death had shown me.

I was now someone new.

And I didn’t know how to feel about that.

I was, quite literally, of two minds about it.

I snorted, chuckling at my stupid joke. It helped.

“What?” she asked, laughter making her eyes dance in the light streaming in from the bathroom.

“Nothing. Just a dumb joke.”

As I glanced at her, it was in an entirely new light. She’d told me she only had the best of intentions for me, and I had a lifetime of memories to back that up. I knew that Death would never willingly hurt me, that she loved me as much as I’d loved her.

And I had loved her. Or a different version of me had. It was surreal to know that I loved her but still held on to her slight distrust and motivations. There was a disconnect in my head, and I couldn’t pretend that the past few days hadn’t happened.

But it also seemed like the most natural thing in the world to take her in my arms and hold her close.

I kissed her hair softly. “This is so strange. I know in my heart that I love you, but my head hasn’t caught up just yet. So I’m not going to instantly proclaim my love for you.”

She nodded. “I understand.”

“But I also can’t deny the part of me that longs to be with you. Since we first met, I’ve been drawn to you, and I don’t think I want to keep fighting that. I want to be with you. Everything in my body tells me it’s the right course of action, but I need to let the rest of me catch up first. Let’s just take things slow, okay?”

She turned around and beamed. “That works for me.”

Death pressed her forehead to mine and kissed me softly. It was a chaste yet passionate kiss that relayed her feelings toward me perfectly.

As she pulled away, she settled into me. “Let’s get some sleep, darling.”

I moaned my agreement and laid down. She immediately moved over and halfway crawled on me, using me as a pillow. I was asleep in seconds.

For the first time since I could remember, I dreamt and remembered it. It was peaceful, even serene. I basked in the strangeness of the surreal world and was loath to leave it. The dream continued but eventually faded as I woke up.

The headache and exhaustion I awoke with a few hours later was worth it. It was going to be a long and painful day, but as I curled into the warmth of Death, I found I didn’t mind so much.

The others weren’t up yet, as there wasn’t any movement coming from downstairs, so I laid back down for a bit longer.

Death was still next to me when Finn came and knocked on the door. He didn’t even wait for a response before barging in.

“Breakfast!” he called out cheerfully as he entered.

Both of us were naked at the time, but I was covered by the blanket; Death, however, sat up and stretched, giving Finn an eyeful of her chest as she did so.

Finn looked, which I couldn’t even fault him for. He was a guy, after all. It was hard-coded in our DNA to stare at boobs when given the opportunity.

“Good morning, Finn,” Death said as she climbed out of bed and went to find her clothes.

“Morning, you two!” he replied.

As soon as she walked into the bathroom, he pantomimed cupping two breasts in front of him before giving me two thumbs up and a smile.

I tossed one of my pillows at him. “Quit staring at my girlfriend and get out!” I shouted, smiling.

Finn whooped and laughed. “He admits it! It’s a Halloween miracle!”

Death’s twinkling laugh came from the other room. Finn left, and I padded into the bathroom to get changed as well.

I could already smell breakfast as we headed into the kitchen. Adeline minded the stove while Finn worked on beating a bowl full of eggs. Salvatore was sipping on a cup of coffee, though from the bag of sugar next to him, I guessed he didn’t take it black.

“Coffee,” I moaned and poured as much as I could fit into the largest mug I could find.

“Why do you love that so much?” Death asked. “It’s bitter.”

“Because the right amount of bitterness brings a certain depth to life. And because it has caffeine, so it doesn’t matter what it tastes like as long as I get my fix.”

When breakfast was done, we devoured the food and then ransacked the house for anything of value. We found a few weapons in the basement, along with a couple of cases of water and protein bars. The guns were nothing compared to our military-grade firearms, just a couple of hunting rifles, but we took the food and water, loading it into the Humvee before we hit the road.

Death kissed me and departed, saying she had some business to tend to in the Land of the Dead and that she might not be back by this evening. Her kiss was extra-long and told of her reticence at leaving, but I kissed her back and told her I’d see her soon.

The road back was clear of any monsters, beast or otherwise, and soon we were back on the interstate.

As Finn predicted, we started seeing more and more cars along the sides of the road. Empty of gas and abandoned. But other than the increasing number of vehicles, there weren’t any signs of life for the first several hours as we rode through.

The problem arose when we started seeing evidence of Callisto’s pets at work.

Carnival Beasts roamed in large packs, but they couldn’t outrun the Humvee, so they weren’t the issue.

Trouble came when we entered a heavily wooded stretch of highway with tall trees on one side of the asphalt. As soon as the shade touched the Humvee, the air twisted and writhed.

The shadows along the ground darkened and then shifted. A high-pitched growl echoed around us as a pack of Midnight Beasts rose from out of nowhere.

Their inky black fur shimmered like polished obsidian as the panther-like monsters rushed us. Their claws slashed out at our tires, but because thick armor-plated wheel wells covered them, they were safe from the beast’s opening attack.

Though metal wrenched and squealed as they carved deep grooves across the vehicle.

“Holy shit!” Adeline shouted as one jumped over the hood as Finn gunned the Humvee.

We raced out of the shadows as fast as possible and broke clear a few hundred feet later. The four of us heaved a sigh of relief that was short-lived.

I turned and glanced back, expecting to see the Midnight Beasts chasing us, but there was nothing.

“Where did they go?”

“Worry about them later. We have a new problem.”

A few dozen feet in front of us, our path was blocked by a pack of some entirely new type of monster. They appeared on the road in front of us out of nowhere and forced Finn to slam on the brakes before they swarmed us.

We stopped twenty or so yards from the pack. There were six of them, each of them tall, hulking quadrupedal beasts reminiscent of lions, but with a pale, sickly skin tone and long, curved black horns on either side of their faces that paired well with the jagged shards of obsidian that approximated their fangs. They were too large to fit in their mouths, and the black spikes continued down their backs, ending in a long, sinewy tail capped with jagged barbs.

What the hell are these things?

I quickly used Inspect.

Monster (Mid-Tier): Pallid Beast (Controlled)

Health: 600/600

Exp: 224

AC: 150

Controlled? Oh shit!

“Ambush!” I shouted and barreled out of the car.

I raised my gun and flipped off the safety, searching for the puppet master.

Though I didn’t have to wait long.

Eight men walked out from the woods on the side of the interstate, each of them dressed for combat, but none of it matched. They wore Kevlar vests of different colors and varying clothes, from military uniforms to jeans and leather jackets, on top of the random assortment of weapons. Military M4’s to double-barrel shotguns and pistols, all of them pointing at us.

I recognized the leader, as did Salvatore.

His brown hair was tied back in a man-bun, leaving his cold blue eyes to stare directly at us.

“Matthias!” Salvatore seethed.

His eyes lit up. “What luck! And I mean for me, not you,” he spat. “You fucking handed over control to a sixteen-year-old girl! And you thought that was a good idea?” Matthias scoffed. “’Least I can take my frustrations out now.”

Matthias whistled, and the highwaymen surrounded us.

“Normally, I’d just take your stuff, bruise you up a bit and send you on your way, but unfortunately, none of you are getting out of here alive.”

This is bad.

With a slow motion to raise my hands, I stared down at Adeline. “Alright, everyone, let’s not fan the flames and get heated here,” I said, and hoped she’d catch the hint.

She slid me a wink, letting me know she did, and we all stared down at the thugs. We slowly went for our weapons while I talked to the leader.

“Come now, Matthias. Surely we can work out a deal?”

He scoffed. “Yeah, like I’d deal with the goddamned Demon Lord.” He laughed. “Might actually balance my karma if I kill you and do the world a favor.”

He was overconfident with his pets, forgetting we defeated triple their number just a couple of days ago and were stronger now.

The five Pallid Beasts were grouped next to Matthias and a perfect target. As soon as our hands were on our weapons, I gave Adeline a subtle nod. Her hand lit aflame, and that was our cue to wreck shit.

Finn rushed forward with Abyssal Armor as the thugs opened fire. But with his armor and combined use of Void Shield, they might as well have been shooting paper for how effective it was.

Adeline held her palm out and threw Conflagration into the middle of the beasts.

Matthias leapt out of the way just in time, but the monsters were too slow.

It burst alight under their feet and billowed out and engulfed the Pallid Beasts. Their sickly, putrescent skin blackened in seconds, and they roared in agony, rushing to get away from the flames.

The beasts were my primary concern. With Finn playing tank and holding back the gunfire, I left him and Salvatore to take care of the thugs while I focused on the Pallid Beasts.

I shifted into Demon Form and sidestepped out from behind Finn toward the monsters.

The Pallid Beasts ran from the inferno, but the damage had been done, and most had only half health.

As one of them turned toward me, its thick matted mane singed and billowing acrid smoke, I raised my hands. My fingers burned hot as Rend intensified. Muscle memory took over, and I lashed out with a swipe. Five raven black crescent waves flew from my obsidian nails and struck the Pallid Beast across its flank.

It hissed as it met its flesh and parted the black, cracking skin with ease. It tore through the monster, hewing a score of thick grooves that carved through muscle and sinew.

I nearly bisected the beast, and it dropped to the pavement with a muffled cry and lay still as its colorful blood pumped out in time with the last beat of its heart.

As it died, I turned to the group of the others and raised my left hand, sending another Rend toward them. I caught one across the face and split it into five neat pieces that continued until Rend stopped at its heavily muscled neck.

It dropped, dead before it hit the ground.

While Rend was on cooldown, I snagged my SMG and brought it tight against my shoulder as I kept moving, never standing still. I fired a few bursts at the men still shooting at Finn. Several of my bursts pinged harmlessly off the blacktop or went wide into the forest, but a few struck home, and I knew I dropped at least one highwayman.

The men scattered under the intensity of our assault, and I let them.

Because they backpedaled right into Salvatore.

He teleported behind them and unloaded with his twin pistols. Salvatore appeared and disappeared as he used Bridge to teleport and execute a few of the highwaymen who were strewn about the bloodstained road.

With them taken care of and the pressure off Finn and Adeline, I turned back to the rest of the injured Pallid Beasts.

They’d slunk off to the side as they tried to flank me, but a few rounds dissuaded them of that idea.

“Adeline, Finn! Light ‘em up!” I shouted.

They turned at my call, and Adeline’s lip curled into a devious grin. A few blasts of Hellbent sent two of them crashing to the ground, nothing but cinders and ash.

Finn brought his shotgun to bear and pumped shell after shell in the last two, blowing chunks of flesh off them. In a handful of seconds, his shotgun clicked empty, and the last of the Pallid Beasts were dead.

As the last remnant of the gunfire faded, I looked around and found nothing but blood and corpses around us.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Human): 42 Exp!

2 Killed (Pallid Beast): 448 Exp!

Experience Boost (25%): 122 Exp!

Total Gain: 612 Exp!

AC Earned: 587!

Level Up!

Before I could deal with my status, Salvatore stepped from thin air next to us and grimaced.

“Matthias got away while I was killing his men. I could’ve given chase, but I didn’t want to leave you three alone.”

I nodded. “Don’t worry. Matthias is too dangerous to leave alive. We’ll get him.”

As I spoke, a quest notification appeared in front of us.

Side Quest: It’s a Jungle Out There!

Deal with the Remaining Highwaymen and Their Leader

Difficulty: Medium

Reward: 1200 Exp!

800 AC!

“C’mon,” I said, nodding to the woods. “Let’s catch up with him before he can escape!”

Chapter 24- Midnight Jungle

The four of us took off after the puppet master as we leapt over the exposed roots of trees and ducked errant branches as we chased Matthias.

Either he was way too overconfident or just plain stupid, because he ran with no hint of subtlety. The woods were thick, and if he’d been clever, he could have looped us around and lost us, but no, he cut straight through and towards his hideout.

We broke through the underbrush and found a large farmstead surrounded by neglected fields.

It was a modern three-story house in need of a fresh coat of paint and a re-shingled roof, though the worn red barn next to it was dangerously close to collapse.

It was several hundred yards away, and the fact Matthias was already at the house by the time we reached the outskirts was kind of impressive.

He rushed inside while the four of us crouched beside a couple of rotting hay bales.

I wanted to stop and level up because I’d gain a new skill, but as we’d kicked over an ant bed, nearly a dozen men charged from the house a moment later, and all thoughts of my status fled as they drew arms and we entered combat.

“Guess we found where the rest of your men ran off to,” I said.

Salvatore nodded. “Looks like they made the wrong choice too.”

Adeline had the best range out of all of us, so she unslung her rifle and crouched, taking aim. She fired in one- to two-round intervals to pick off those she could. Two men dropped as blood spurted from their chests.

The others quickly halted and dove for cover. They rattled off potshots like they had ammo to burn, their gunfire noisy as it pockmarked the earth a dozen yards in front of us, a few landing closer. Strands of hay burst open and floated through the air as they fired but didn’t penetrate our cover.

Something I didn’t have confidence in that would continue.

The straw is tightly packed, but it's rotten. All it takes is one round to make it through, and we’re dead. We need to move.

A few poked their heads up, and Adeline stopped firing, ducking for cover. She glanced over at me and reloaded.

“Care to offer advice, oh wise leader?”

“How about not getting shot?”

She barked a harsh laugh and blindly fired a few more rounds. My SMG wasn’t meant for such long distances. Finn’s shotgun was utterly useless at this range. Salvatore might get lucky with his aim, but his pistols were about as effective as Finn’s shotgun.

Damn it to hell. How do I get us out of this one?

We had to move. That much was a given, but they had the advantage and the numbers. I didn’t like our chances if we rushed them. One or more of us would get hit, and I wasn’t going to risk our lives if I didn’t absolutely have to.

We’d essentially drawn ourselves into a stalemate. The highwaymen couldn’t reliably hit us from the house, but there were too many, and it would turn into a shooting gallery the moment we poked our heads out.

Oh, screw it!

“Ade, toss me your gun!”

She looked at me and back at her gun and threw it to me without even a word. I caught it and staggered; it was heavier than I expected, and I hadn’t balanced for the catch. I tossed her my SMG and relayed the plan to everyone.

“Alright, on my count, I want you guys to lay down covering fire for me. When I move, they’re going to go for me. Ade, let loose with Hellbent and burn them out. Sal, when they’re distracted, Bridge next to them and start dropping them while I pick them off with the rifle.”

“What the hell do I do?” Finn asked.

“Stand there and look pretty. You’re our tank, but Matthias already knows he can’t harm you while you’re wearing Abyssal Armor. How long can you keep both skills active since you’ve already used them, a few minutes tops? You’d be a sitting duck if you ran out of time out there, so use your pistol and try to pick off targets from here if you can.”

He grumbled but didn’t refute my argument. I didn’t enjoy leaving him out of the fight, but he had no range, and his skills were draining.

I held up my hand to signal everyone. Three, two, one. As soon as my last finger fell, I took off.

The three of them unloaded on the highwaymen and allowed me to move unseen while they ducked behind their cover.

My goal was the first set of hay bales to my left, and I just hoped I had enough Agility to make it. I put everything I had into my sprint and dashed to the next set of covers as the others laid down round after round of covering fire. I made it in a few seconds and caught my breath while checking that no one had seen me move.

From a glance, it seemed like they hadn’t, which meant I could take my time lining up a shot. I crouched low, using the hay bale itself as my shooting platform, and pushed the rifle's barrel through a thin section of the hay before I angled the scope out and took aim.

The highwaymen were much more concerned about the gunfire from my friends to even notice me. Three men were crouched low behind a rusted old tractor and had a pretty good defensive position. If Sal and Ade tried to move up, they’d be torn to bloody ribbons.

That fact put them at the top of my priority target’s list.

My fingers glided along the trigger, and the rifle bucked against me. My aim was true, and my first round took the closest one through the skull, obliterating it and sending a cascade of gore raining around him as his body dropped. The other men turned at the report, and their eyes widened at their dead friend. I flicked it to automatic. One long depression later, the remaining men were dead and leaking from half a dozen holes between them.

Damn. It worked, but that was wasteful.

While effective, I’d essentially burned through half my ammo, killing three men. I switched to semi-auto and was more careful about not firing so much at once.

The highwaymen knew their comrades had been killed, but they couldn’t pinpoint me because of the suppressor and the fact I’d hidden my muzzle flash inside the hay bale.

This really is a nice gun, but far too unwieldy for me to carry. I much prefer my SMG.

The men panicked and began desperately searching around for me, but they were too slow. I was able to get two more kills before they wised up, and I had to burn the rest of my ammo to keep them pinned down.

The SCAR clicked empty, and I cursed, shouldering it and switching to my pistol. By now, they’d guessed at my position and were lighting it up, forcing me to take cover.

Thundering blasts of gunfire tore up the hay and ground next to me, and a bullet passed through the hay dangerously close to my head.

I was living on borrowed time, and sooner or later, I’d get hit. I had to move, or I’d die. Staying still was the worst possible thing I could do. I solidified my reckless plan to come out, guns blazing, when a voice filled the air.

“Hey, you bastards, take your best shot!” Finn screamed at the top of his lungs, but the gunfire still muffled it.

He strolled out in Abyssal Armor, firing with his handgun. His shots forced the men to take cover, and they quickly ducked as Finn kept his shots steady and practiced as he fired at random intervals.

I nearly shouted at seeing him in his pitch-black armor stroll through the dying field like he was invincible. My heart swelled at his unabashed confidence as he kept firing.

“Alright, Ade. Light ‘em up!” he shouted.

She chuckled and leapt from behind her cover, her hands burning with crimson flames. Adeline chucked fireballs like a madwoman, and her aim was true. Each one struck at least nearby to the cover that the highwaymen hid behind, and the blazing tendrils quickly spread.

As soon as they struck, the bandits scattered and jumped from out of cover. As the fires crept along, they fled.

And that’s when Salvatore arrived.

He appeared from the shadows behind the fleeing group with a whisper and dropped the remaining half dozen with well-placed headshots. The men were dead in three seconds, half their skulls missing, and bloody brain matter splashed across the open ground.

That was incredible.

While macabre, I wasn’t going to complain about the results.

Combat Results!

5 Killed (Human): 210 Exp!

Experience Boost (25%): 52 Exp!

Total Gain: 262 Exp!

AC Earned: 742!

We’d killed all the remaining bandits outside, but the quest had yet to update, which meant we hadn’t dealt with everyone.

I turned as the others approached. “You guys seen Matthias?”

Finn shook his head, deactivating Abyssal Armor and returning to normal. “Not since he ran into the farmhouse. Want to go check it out?”

I nodded. “Yeah, but we should be careful. He likely knows we’re coming. I don’t want us walking into a trap.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about that,” Salvatore said as he reloaded his pistols. “Matthias was always a coward, a vicious bastard that hid behind his beasts. The only reason I kept him at all is because of his class.”

“Alright, let’s go in. Just be careful,” I said, then paused as Adeline walked up. “Oh, here’s your gun back. Thanks.”

“Anytime,” she replied and handed me mine.

I checked it over, dropped the magazine to check the rounds, and shoved a fresh one in, and with that settled, we all headed into the house.

Inside was all well worn but with cared for furniture and some faded yellow portraits on the walls, and yet the place was a pigsty. Empty cans, food containers, and trash littered the place, and some rather rude graffiti was on the walls.

“Well, glad to see we rid the world of some scumbags,” Finn said, poking at a moldy plate in the sink with one of his pistols.

“I have to agree with you on that one. Now let’s split up and find Matthias,” I said and started up the stairs.

“I’ve got this floor,” Salvatore said.

“We’ll check the basement,” Adeline said. “Watch your ass.”

I nodded and went up to the second floor with my gun drawn.

The second floor was empty, with a few bedrooms and bathrooms just as worn and filthy as the downstairs. I had the misfortune to check the closets and under the beds for Matthias. While I found plenty of rancid filth, the specific piece of trash I was searching for continued to elude me.

He’s either in the basement or in the attic. Let’s find out which.

I went up to the third and final floor. The only thing was a door that led to the attic itself. I tested the knob and found it locked.

Guess I have my answer.

My heart rate increased as the adrenaline kicked in and my hands shook. I fought down the nerves and steeled myself. I shifted to Demon Form and swiped a hand up. Rend took hold, and as the blades connected to the door, they severed it and some of the wall into neat slivers of wood.

Matthias shouted as the door fell to pieces, screaming bloody murder.

And as I stepped in, I found out why. Rend had caught him in the side. Half his leg was hanging off him, and his chest was a mess of blood as he tried to keep his intestines from spilling out. Too red blood was pooling under him as he stared up at me with glassy eyes.

He raised his pistol, but he was too slow.

My second Rend took him in the head, and Matthias was no more.

His pistol barked once as his body jerked and then went still as he crumbled, blood and gray matter spilling out of what remained of his head.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Human): 42 Exp!

Experience Boost (25%): 11 Exp!

Total Gain: 53 Exp!

AC Earned: 1,238!

Side Quest: It’s a Jungle Out There Completed!

Reward: 1200 Exp!

Experience Boost (25%): 300 Exp!

Total Gain: 1500 Exp!

AC Earned: 800!

Level Up!

Alright! Nice─

My thoughts became hazy as a cold numbness spread from my side. A rapidly spreading bloodstain dripped from just above my hip.

Matthias had actually tagged me with his shot.

It missed my Kevlar vest by less than an inch and was pouring too much of my blood out and down my leg.

Ailment: Critically Wounded

-75 HP per Minute

Ah, hell.

I blinked, and the cool numbness spreading through me turned into a burning agony as waves of pain traveled up my body. It was as if I’d left a poker in the fire for too long and then shoved it into my guts.

I dropped to the ground as the pain became too intense.

Damn. This hurts!

I clamped my hands over the wound as blood spilled over my fingers. It was a gut wound, and I had no idea if it’d hit anything vital or how much time I had. I needed to stabilize the wound.

But needing something and having the ability to get it were two different things. My satchel tumbled off me when I dropped, and it lay a few feet away. I scrambled for it, but it might as well have been miles away.

As my fingers brushed the leather, my strength failed me, and my thoughts became jumbled as my head grew hazy.

Footsteps pounded up the stairs.

Adeline gasped. “Killian!”

I turned over and tried to sit up, but it looked like I’d spent what little strength I’d gathered.

“Just to let you guys know. Getting shot isn’t like the movies at all. It kinda sucks.”

“Shit, shit, shit. Hold on, Hermano. We’ll get you patched up.” Finn scrambled for my bag and pulled out the med kit.

“Cool. Think I’m going to pass out while you work.”

He said something else, but I couldn’t make it out as I fell unconscious.

We were on the road when I awoke. The engine's thrum vibrated through me, and the scrape of tires rolling over asphalt told me as much. There was no pain, save for a throbbing ache coming from my side.

I sat up slowly, making sure I was whole, but beyond some ruined clothing, I was fine.

Salvatore looked over when I moved. “Guys, he’s up.”

Adeline and Finn both jerked around at Salvatore’s words. Waves of sweeping relief fell off them as they found me up and blinking.

“’Bout time you got your lazy ass up,” Adeline said. “It’s almost your turn to drive.”

I chuckled. “Sorry for laying down on the job, boss.”

Finn laughed. “She’s all talk. She carried you back herself. Was terrified you were going to die.”

“Finn!” Adeline shouted, slapping him on the arm. “What part of sworn to secrecy did you not understand?”

He grinned. “All of it, to be honest.”

“Don’t worry, guys. No way would I let myself get taken down by a glorified circus performer,” I said.

Finn knocked his fist against my knee. “Course not. It was a good thing he hit you where he did. Gut wounds are slow killers.” He laughed, but it was cold. “Though from what I saw in the attic, you got lion tamer Picasso back for shooting you.

“Anyway, I got you stabilized and ensured you wouldn’t bleed out. Your Mantle’s auto-healing took care of the rest.”

“Ah. Good to know for the next time I get shot,” I said, working the kinks out as I shifted in my seat.

Salvatore snorted. “Yeah, let’s be honest. That’s probably a guarantee at this point.”

I glanced out the window. The day had come and gone; the sky was fading into a soft purple to signal night was coming.

“How long was I out for?”

“Couple hours. Guess your system needed time to recover from the blood loss. We were just discussing stopping for the night.”

Even though I’d been asleep, I was exhausted. “I agree. How far is the next town?”

Finn shook his head. “Too far, we’re probably going to park the car and just camp out here for the night.”

“Sounds good.”

With that, we all settled in while Finn looked for a spot to camp.

While he drove, I opened my Mantle to deal with my status. With our destination fast approaching, I wanted to be as prepared as possible.

I came close to death today. I snorted. I much prefer cuddling Death than courting her.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 500/500 (550)

Mana: 550/550

Stamina: 400/400

Level: 16

Exp: 342/2232

30 Stat Points Available!

New Skills Available!

Skill Point: 1

Damn, two levels? That’s a nice surprise. Though, I’m not sure it was worth getting shot over.

As I cracked a smile, I had to think over the fight with Matthias and his beasts.

Those Pallid Beasts were pretty tough, and bullets didn’t seem to do much to them. Hell, Finn had to empty his shotgun just to take down two of them. They were mid-tier, which means the monsters we’re going to come across as we continue are going to be tougher. We all need to get stronger.

And that meant I had to be precise with how I allocated my points.

I’d like to keep leveling up Charisma. It’s incredibly valuable, but I’m neglecting my other stats to focus on it every level. The highest Charisma score possible won’t help me if I get myself killed before benefiting from it.

Though with thirty stat points, I could pretty much do what I wanted…within reason.

But I should see what my new skills are before I put points anywhere. They’ll affect my decision for sure.

I pulled up my skills list.

Current Skills

Demon Form (First Form)

Rend (Rank 1)

Skills List

Grasp of the Abyss (Rank 1)

Barrier (Rank 1)

Displacement (Rank 1)

Demonic Gaze (Passive)

New Skills

Tracker (Rank 1): Places a magical beacon on target, can follow for long distances. Drains 10 mana per minute with it active. Can toggle on and off. Tracker disappears after 24 hours. (Range improves with Demonic Gaze)

Cost: 25 Mana

Cooldown: Instant

Coagulation (Rank 1): Harden a target’s blood in their veins to deal damage and stop them from moving for a short time. Cannot be used on targets without blood.

Damage: 300 (Magical) (Scales with Wisdom)

Cost: 150 Mana

Cooldown: Instant

Promotion (Rank 1): Temporarily take the attributes of another vicious piece and gain their skills for a short time. Cannot use other class skills while Promotion is active.

Duration: 10 Minutes (Scales with Charisma)

Cost: None

Cooldown: 1 Hour

Damn, all of those are cool. Tracker and Demonic Gaze are useless in combat, but they are useful skills to have if I ever need them. Not worth spending my skill point on either of them, though. Promotion is also a must, but I need to figure out my own skills for the time being before I tackle the others.

I’ll save that one for when we are all stronger.

I liked both Coagulation and Displacement. They were equally powerful, but just from the briefest glance, Displacement was infinitely more versatile. It sounded like a spell that would be incredibly useful for combat, and I’d already come up with a few ways to use it.

Can I use it to take an enemy’s gun away, or what if I focus on just an individual body part? Could I take just an arm? Or even a heart? Kali Ma!

After that very enticing thought, I obviously chose Displacement.

Displacement (Rank 1): Displaces matter in a two-foot sphere.

Damage: Unknown (Spatial)

Wisdom: 35 (35% Increase in Range)

Range: 50 feet in front of the caster. (Scales with Wisdom) (67 Feet)

Cost: 100 Mana

Cooldown: Instant

Progress to Rank 2: 0/50

While I’m here, I might as well check Rend's progress.

Rend (Rank 1)

Damage: 100-150 (Abyssal)

Cost: 50 Stamina

Cooldown: 5 Seconds

Strength: 35 (35% Damage Boost)

Progress to Rank 2: 7/50

I really hadn’t used it that much since I’d acquired it, but I had a feeling that was going to change as we got to the city.

With my skill chosen, I now had to deal with my stats. Thirty points gave me a lot of room to work, and with my new spell, Wisdom was a must. I also wanted to keep Endurance climbing as well to keep my offensive options open.

Five went into each, and then I added some more to Strength and Constitution. With ten left, I put five into Agility and Charisma.

When I’d made my choices, I hit accept.

Stat Page

Strength: 45

Constitution: 35

Perception: 25

Endurance: 35

Agility: 40

Wisdom: 40

Charisma: 45

By the time I’d finished, Finn had found a good spot to set up camp for the night and pulled off the road and into a ditch. It was low enough that it would hide our presence from anyone not actively looking for us. He quickly shut off the engine and turned around.

“Who’s up for first watch?”

“Nose goes!” Adeline raised her finger to her nose quickly.

I followed suit, and so did Finn, leaving one very confused Salvatore.

“Oh, right.” He chuckled, grinning. “I forgot I’m running with children. Don’t worry. I’ll take first watch.”

I pulled my jacket tighter around myself, and before I knew it, I was asleep again.

Whatever affected my healing sent my subconscious into overload, and I experienced the most intense fever dream of my life. All of it jumbled and distorted like a fireworks display catching fire in a house of mirrors. Too nauseatingly bright and colorful.

I was grateful when I jolted out of my slumber.

My head smacked against the glass, and I bolted up. “What the hell?”

“Sorry, Hermano,” Finn said, concentrating solely on driving. “You might want to buckle up, though.”

Before I could ask what was happening, I noticed Salvatore and Adeline hanging out the window with their handguns, firing sporadically at something I couldn’t see.

I craned my neck around to stare out the back window, and I really wished I hadn’t.

Ten or fifteen Midnight Beasts were hightailing it, chasing after us on the interstate.

“What the hell?”

Adeline popped off with her pistol in one hand, but the car was swerving too much for her to aim properly, so she was mostly blind firing. And the bullets that managed to strike the beasts just passed harmlessly through them as their bodies turned to wisps of smoke.

“Dammit!” She snarled, and as the slide locked back, she dropped the empty gun onto the seat, and her hand erupted with crimson flames. “Take this, you bastards!”

As Adeline let loose with her magic, Salvatore sighed, taking careful aim before he fired. The bullet struck the lead Midnight Beast in the head, but it did no damage.

“This is an exercise in futility,” he muttered, and kept up his string of pinpoint shots.

“What the hell happened while I was asleep?”

“Woke up to a pack of them sniffing around the car,” Finn said. “So I took off like a bat out of hell. Been trying to shake them for half an hour now, but they’re persistent.”

I looked back and grimaced. “Think they’re the same ones we ran into yesterday?”

Salvatore shrugged. “That’s a worrying thought. These things are tough as hell. Our guns aren’t working on them.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.”

Means we need to get close enough to use our abilities on them if we’re going to have any hope of losing them.

“Okay. Guys, I have a really stupid plan,” I said.

“As long as it’s not split up, I’m listening,” Finn said.

“Shut up,” Adeline replied with a smirk.

“Finn, speed up, and then when we have some distance between all of us, we’re going to jump out and take them on.”

“Are you crazy!” he shouted, swerving around an abandoned car.

“Yes, but that’s not the point.” I shook my head. “Our guns aren’t working. We need to get close to take them on. We’ve fought them before. We know their patterns. We can do this.”

He cursed but saw the logic in what I was saying, and he floored it. After a few seconds, we’d put a decent amount of space between us.

“Alright, everyone, get ready!” Finn said.

He slammed on the brakes, and we dove out of the car.

As I flung myself out, I activated Demon Form. My world spun, and rough asphalt dug into my skin, and I threw my hands down, my sharp claws digging into the concrete, leaving deep furrows as I slowed and then came to a stop.

I stood in a flash, my hands in front of me as I prepared to engage the Midnight Beasts.

But as I scanned the interstate, I frowned.

“What the hell?”

Salvatore stood beside me, his twin pistols raised as they swept in an arc.

“Where did they go?” Finn asked.

The road, though littered with broken-down cars and trash, was free of the monsters that had been on our heels just moments before.

I glanced at all the long shadows cast by the dim sun through the light snowdrift scattering around us, just waiting for one of them to move.

Adeline had her hands filled with fire, and as the four of us grouped up, we formed a tight formation as we waited for the beasts.

But as the seconds turned to minutes, I started to get paranoid.

“Okay, seriously. Where the hell did they go?” I asked.

“I have no damn clue,” Finn said, shaking his head.

“That worries me.” I kept glancing around. “They’re ambush hunters, so why chase us out in the open only to run away when we stopped?”

Salvatore shook his head. “I don’t know. But if they’re not going to show themselves, then I say we get back in the Humvee and be on our way. I don’t like being so out in the open.”

Another few seconds of searching only proved fruitless. If the Midnight Beasts were out there, they weren’t showing themselves.

“Alright, let’s get back. Slowly. Watch the shadows.”

The four of us made it to the Humvee, and as all the doors shut, Finn hit the gas, and we were once more speeding away.

Though something was nagging at me that even the many miles we put under us couldn’t shake.

Chapter 25- Into the Dark

It took us another day to reach the other end of Pennsylvania, and finally, after over two days of driving, we were close to our destination.

Adeline nudged me awake, and I jolted up, my hand going for my pistol. “What’s up?”

“Time to get up, sleepy.” She smiled playfully.

“We’re in New York?”

“Not yet. Got a couple of hours left.”

I sat up and groaned. “Any more sign of the Midnight Beasts?”

Salvatore nodded. “Here and there. They’ve been keeping their distance, but I’ve seen them out of the corner of my eye.”

“And that’s not counting the other myriad of Callisto’s pets that have been hounding us for fifty miles now,” Finn said. “We’re outrunning them, but it makes me hesitant to think of what we’ll find in the city.”

I didn’t like how the beasts were behaving. It was almost like they were keeping us moving, forcing us down the route they wanted.

Like they’re herding us.

Which worried the hell out of me. But there wasn’t much we could do about it. We still needed to get to New York, and there weren’t many other routes that we could take. We were running low on gas, and fewer and fewer stations we passed had working pumps.

“I don’t like it, but we stay the course. Though keep your eyes peeled. It’s liable we’re walking into a trap.”

“Yeah, that’s what worries me,” Salvatore said.

We didn’t say much after that. The closer we got to New York itself, the more we left the old world behind. Back in Grissom, I could almost pretend the apocalypse wasn’t going on. But here, it was staring me in the face.

Hundreds of broken down or burned-out and wrecked vehicles littered the sides of the road. They’d been pushed aside by something big and heavy as the sides were crumpled and scraped to high hell.

Thousands of personal belongings and trash drenched the streets and swept up as we passed by. What buildings we drove by were shattered remnants of whatever they used to be. Coffee shops and clothing outlets sat looted and broken. And there wasn’t a single vehicle or store that was untouched. All of them were in various states of collapse.

Everywhere I looked, I was hit in the face by the fact that the world I knew was gone. And the new one operated by a completely different set of rules.

We’ve all gotten stronger, but is it enough? We’re walking into the lion’s den here. Or panther’s den, as it were.

My gun lay next to me on the seat, and I picked it up, checking it over. It was practically useless now against Callisto’s pets, but I’d still rather have it than not.

With nothing else to do, I fidgeted and glanced to see if we were being followed. Shadows moved out of the corner of my eye, marking the Midnight Beasts.

But that wasn’t what bothered me. I knew they were leading us somewhere, had prepared for that eventuality.

Something else sent shivers up my spine.

It was like there were eyes on us. Something I couldn’t see. It nagged at the back of my mind, like an itch I couldn’t scratch.

The next few hours were taxing, to say the least, as the strange feeling never left me until we reached Newark. By the time we made it to the city, the road had grown increasingly dangerous. Each passing mile, the piled-up cars and debris grew until we physically couldn’t drive any further.

Not wanting to leave our hard-won supplies and Humvee in the open, we parked it in a nearby garage, and we took the steering wheel key with us. I didn’t like leaving the object we worked so hard for, but it was a necessity.

And it had served its purpose. We’d made it to the city mostly unscathed.

Newark

Threat Level: 12

Status: Plagued

After popping the trunk, we had a serious logistics issue. We had a ton of supplies in the back, more food and water than the four of us could go through in a month, and we couldn’t take it all.

Luckily, someone thought ahead and stashed six olive-green duffel bags in the back. So, we divvied up the supplies and stuffed as much as we could comfortably carry in the bags.

At the very bottom of the Humvee was a heavy road repair kit. And among them were half a dozen road flares.

I smirked at the sight.

I need to thank Wise the next time I see him. Buy him a beer, at least.

I grabbed them, as well as all the ammo for my weapons, putting the full magazines in my satchel along with some extra food and water. The rest went into my duffel, and it weighed at least fifty pounds by the time I was finished.

I looked out in the direction of New York, and I could just see the city in the distance. “How many miles away is that?”

Finn took a quick look and then went back to his duffel. “A dozen, maybe more. Nearly a four-hour walk in good conditions, I expect it’ll be nightfall before we enter the city itself.”

Which wasn’t good. We hadn’t spent much time out and about in the dark, so I planned to find some place and hunker down for the night, but that presented its own set of challenges.

“Well,” I said as I slung the duffel over my shoulder. “We best get moving.”

“Think they’re going to let us?” Finn asked, pointing to the shadows twisting in the distance.

“Until we’re where they want us,” I said. “But don’t worry. I’ve got a plan.”

“Why doesn’t that make me feel better?” Adeline said as she slung her duffle over her shoulder.

“Because it’s me.”

She snorted. “Ain’t that the damn truth.”

The four of us finished packing quickly and then headed out.

Newark itself had obviously been through rough times, but it wasn’t a wasteland. There were even a few buildings that almost hadn’t been touched, save for the scattering of broken glass storefronts and debris that flooded the streets.

After a few miles, the lingering unease crawling up my spine vanished. And whatever was watching us left. But the absence almost worried me just as much, so I kept my ears tuned to every sound as my finger rested on my trigger.

Shadows hissed as we passed, and the sickly luminescent eyes of the Midnight Beasts stalked us as we went. More of them slunk in from the sides, flanking us but keeping their distance.

“I really hate this,” Adeline said. “Makes my skin crawl.”

“Yep,” Finn said. “There're dozens of them. Can we really take them all?”

I nodded. “We don’t have a choice. If we can’t handle these mid-tier beasts, then we won’t survive in New York.”

“Hmm,” Salvatore muttered under his breath. “Wherever they’re leading us will be dark, with lots of shadows to make it easy to ambush us from.”

“Yep. But good thing we’ve got Roman candle Adeline here to light the way,” I said.

“Ha. Just make sure you don’t get burned in the process.”

The four of us made slow progress, and the numerous beasts echoed every step as they prowled behind us.

To make matters worse, thunder echoed overhead as it started to rain. The chilled winter air only made it worse as the howling wind sent cascades of icy spray to soak us to the bone. We stepped up our pace as the rain poured down harder, but even then, it took hours to walk the ten miles to Newport and the Holland Tunnel.

The tunnel was dark and foreboding, and as the concrete towered over us on all sides, I glanced back and found nearly twenty Midnight Beasts blocking our exit.

So, this is where they’ve been leading us. Something is waiting for us in the tunnel.

“Guess we’ve arrived,” I said.

“Looks like it,” Salvatore said, drawing his pistols but dropping the magazines.

“Whatcha doing?” I asked.

He smiled as he reached into his bag and pulled out several extended magazines with a different kind of ammunition in them. The 9mm rounds were blue-tipped, the brass shimmering as lightning flashed.

“Well, I lack any offensive skills, so I figured I better break out the big guns.” He grinned. “Incendiary tracer rounds. It burns at around five thousand degrees on impact. I’d like to see their mana deal with these.”

I laughed. “You’ve been holding out on us.”

Salvatore shook his head. “Expensive. Triple the AC cost of regular ammunition. But it never hurts to be prepared.”

“Alright, I’d rather face whatever monstrosity’s in there than stand out here in the rain another second,” Finn said. “Let’s get going!”

He was right, and with our nerves strung as tight as piano wire, we entered Holland Tunnel.

Pitch black darkness settled around us. There wasn’t a single light source in the entire tunnel, and all the overhead fixtures had burned out or been shattered. Ade fumbled for a flashlight while Finn switched on his attached LED light next to the barrel of his shotgun.

As his high lumen light cast a wide arc of brilliant light through the decrepit tunnel, something ran by a car about fifty feet in front of us. It was gone in an instant, but the shadow it cast was of something very large.

Finn froze. “Please tell me you saw that?”

“If you mean the lightning-fast shadow of something the size of a van.” I shook my head. “Nope. Sure didn’t.”

“Oh good. I was worried my insanity was wearing off.”

I flicked on my own light and thumbed the safety off while I was at it. Callisto had a weird sense of humor when it came to his beasts, and I didn’t want to be blindsided by some unnamed horror from the depths of hell.

The mass of jam-packed cars made the shadows cast by our lights elongated and turned them sinister.

But they thankfully stayed where they were at.

Though the shrill howl that echoed through the tunnel behind us got us moving.

I took point. Finn followed behind, shotgun at the ready while Adeline and Salvatore brought up the rear.

Our footsteps echoed in the tunnel, announcing us to all, but we weren’t alone, and whatever was in the tunnel knew we were here. The air was musty and rank, almost rotted. A sickly miasma crept along my skin as the air shifted and distorted.

I turned as the first Midnight Beast launched itself at me. It appeared from underneath a mid-sized sedan and snapped its jaws as I brought my SMG to bear. They closed around the barrel, narrowly missing my hand as its weight crashed into me, and I fell back.

Something cracked underneath me as my head smashed against something hard, but I couldn’t stop and worry about it with the monster on my chest. Its teeth dug into my gun, but it couldn’t break through the metal, my flashlight swaying, illuminating the three other Midnight Beasts that were creeping toward the others.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out one of the road flares. I lit it, and as the tunnel lit with a brilliant crimson light, the Midnight Beast recoiled, letting out a pained cry as it shut its eyes.

“Eat this!”

I let go of my weapon and thrust the burning flare into the gaping maw of the beast. I snatched my hand back before the beast could take a bite of me, but it soon had many more problems to worry about.

It whined as it flung its head in chaos, backing up and trying to dislodge the burning flare lodged in its throat. Shadows arced off it as it ate through its mana, to no avail. And after a second, the shadows stopped altogether.

When it ran out of mana, I drew my pistol and fired. My shots took it in the head, splattering its sickly yellow blood and brain matter over the car it’d ambushed me from.

As it died, its mouth opened, and a flash of crimson light spilled from it as the flare continuously burned. The beast’s carcass went up in a brilliant inferno as flames brought some brightness to the tunnel. The acrid stench of singed flesh and smoke filled my nose.

I tried not to cough as Adeline brought her magic to bear and ensnared a group of Midnight Beasts in a single Conflagration circle.

They howled in torment as they died, turning to briquettes in seconds.

As they died, I stood and retrieved my SMG. Several bite marks marred the surface, but it was only superficial damage.

Finn and Salvatore scanned around us, waiting for more beasts, but the only movement were the dancing flames that slowly dwindled.

The carcass of the one I killed dissolved to ash, and I knelt, casting my light over the ground, and I grimaced.

Because I found out what I’d landed on.

Bones. Human. And a lot of them.

The concrete was littered with dozens of remains. I shook my head as I picked up the flare before I chucked it ahead of us.

The light sent shadows cascading along the walls, illuminating vehicles and the remains of even more dead, before it landed and rolled.

It stopped, and suddenly, a massive paw came down and smothered the flare, snuffing it out with a sharp crack.

All four of us turned our lights to the beast, and I paled as its full size was revealed.

The creature held the same panther-like qualities as the other Midnight Beasts, but it was at least four times the size of the regular ones. Its brilliant orange eyes glinted in the light and narrowed, hinting at far more intelligence than any mere beast.

I cast inspect, though I could guess at what was standing in front of us.

Monster (Boss-Tier): Midnight King

Health: 8000/8000

Mana: 6000/6000

Exp: 2856

AC: 2,200

As it stared at me, I spoke.

“You’ve certainly put in the effort to get us here, Midnight King.”

It chuckled, a rolling, sibilant hiss that grated on my ears. “That I have, Demon Lord of the Black. My subjects corralled you quite nicely. It was almost too easy to lure you here.” It took another step, its paw landing on the hood of some sedan and crumpling it as its jagged claws carved deep grooves into the metal as it came forward. “Right where I wanted you.”

Finn and Adeline sucked in a breath as it spoke while Salvatore raised his pistols.

“Oh, that’s not creepy in the slightest,” Adeline said.

The Midnight King’s eyes snapped to her. “Pawns do not speak while kings are conversing.”

She squeaked and shut her mouth as a reflex before fury crossed her eyes, and she grimaced. It looked like a retort burned on the tip of her tongue as she opened her mouth, but I stepped forward before she could speak.

“What’s so important that you went through so much to speak with me?”

It grinned, a facsimile of a Cheshire smile as it flicked its barbed tongue out. A splash of thick, clear poison landed by my foot, and I had to fight not to take a step back on instinct.

“When else but now would I get the chance to see you for myself and be able to test your measure?” It shook its head. “What an unworthy master our god has chosen.”

“Unworthy, why?” I asked.

It snarled. “Kin killer. You who have slain one of the kings. You would spurn our aid in your quest and slaughter our kind by the score. You have been marked as a traitor.”

I smirked. “If that’s the case, then your words are a compliment. I never had any intention of working with your kind. The only use you serve is as experience points.”

“Fool!” it roared, its hackles rising as it stalked forward. “Then allow me to rid this world of an undeserving Demon Lord so that a new one may be chosen.”

“Bring it, Sylvester. I’ll make a rug out of you.”

The Midnight King pulsed with shadows as it launched at me just as I shifted into Demon Form. But as it flew through the air, the darkness clinging to it grew denser.

I raised my hands to defend myself, but as the Midnight King hit me, its entire body phased right through me, sending a spike of ice into my heart as the shadows clung to me, burning along my skin.

As it passed through me, it solidified once more, spinning faster than I could turn and lashing out at me. Its barbed tail whipped toward me and slammed into my stomach. One of its spikes punched the breath out of me as a lance of pain struck my chest, slicing through the Kevlar and stopping as it hit a rib, and I went flying.

I clipped the fender of a minivan and rolled as glass shattered and shards of a taillight scattered in the dim light. It cracked underfoot as I stood and focused on the Midnight King.

Ailment: Major Bleeding

-25 HP per Minute

I didn’t have time to worry about my wounds. With the adrenaline flooding through me, I didn’t even feel it as I knelt and popped more flares, tossing them as I would grenades, sending them scattering around to light up the tunnel.

They hissed before sparkling crimson light surrounded us, revealing dozens of cars and more human bones than I wanted to see, most of them broken open for their marrow.

The Midnight King hissed as the light burned away his shadows, slowly draining its mana.

As it recoiled from the light, I brought my gun up. I fired in short bursts, making sure each was on target. The bullets struck its obsidian skin and passed harmlessly through, pinging off the concrete wall and striking vehicles behind it. After firing half of my magazine, all I’d done was take a small bite out of its mana pool.

I tossed it to the side. It was next to useless right now, and trying to keep using it would just waste time. It clattered to the ground as I unleashed Rend.

The thick blades rushed out as dark as the Midnight King’s fur and sliced into the shadows hovering just off its body. Resistance met Rend as they struck the oily darkness, and I was afraid it wouldn’t be able to break through, but a second later, the mist gave way, and Rend bit across the Midnight King’s shoulder.

Five thin scratches bubbled yellow blood as the king hissed.

It flicked its tongue out, sending it arcing towards me.

I threw myself in a roll, and it snagged on the edge of my coat as it passed before it slammed into the side of a car, denting the metal. I rolled when I hit the ground, and as I came up, I lashed out with the other side of Rend.

They crossed the distance in the blink of an eye and ripped across the Midnight King’s snout, scoring only a few superficial wounds.

Dammit. That shadow is basically armor. It’s mitigating so much of my damage. I’m basically doing nothing.

Well, then, time to step up my game.

It’s time to see what Displacement can do.

As the Midnight King roared at me and pounced, I leapt to the side. It sailed overhead and landed just shy of one of the numerous cars around us. It whirled around and snarled, dripping darkness to the concrete that stuck like tar, bubbling and hissing as it pooled.

I raised my hand, aiming for its neck as I cast Displacement.

The air shifted and distorted where I’d aimed. In the blink of an eye, a ripple formed on top of the Midnight Beast, spreading into a transparent sphere that warped and twisted, collapsing in on itself as it imploded. It sucked every inch of matter within its domain into itself and vanished, taking a large bite of the Midnight King’s shoulder with it.

A tremor pulsed next to me before the air popped, and a shimmer deposited a hunk of shadow and flesh next to my feet. It rushed out as it slapped against the ground, spilling blood and viscera out next to my boots.

The king howled, but as it tried to take a step, it stumbled as it tore open the wound on its shoulder further.

Shadows rushed to cover the damage, but there was a rush of wind as Salvatore appeared on top of the hood of a car next to the Midnight King.

He aimed at the vulnerability I’d created and unleashed a salvo with his dual pistols. Explosive gunfire shattered the tense battlefield as bullets swarmed the Midnight Beast. The rounds sparked against its fur and exposed muscle, sending blasts of flames arcing off along with a torrent of smoke.

It tried to claw at him, but he just jumped into the air, dodging the beast’s swipe with an inch to spare. The grace he displayed as he flowed was unreal. He moved around the king and into the air with lithe precision. He landed on the hood of a nearby sedan and brought his machine pistols to bear.

The king yelped as tufts of its fur caught ablaze, and its mana plummeted. It tried to back away but slammed into the side of a pickup truck and overturned it, sending it rolling down the tunnel before it crashed into another vehicle.

As Salvatore clicked empty a handful of seconds later, the Midnight King’s mana was a third of what it was, and it hadn’t entirely stopped the incendiary rounds from blistering its flesh. Numerous patches of missing fur and oozing skin littered its once magnificent coat.

The Midnight King roared in absolute rage. “You dare!”

It surged toward Salvatore, but he just vanished before the Midnight King could sink its claws into him.

He reappeared a dozen feet away, a wry grin on his face as he quickly reloaded. “You’re not the only one who’s an ambush hunter.” Salvatore raised his pistols. “How about round two?”

“How about I do you one better?” Adeline shouted.

She held out her palms, index fingers and thumbs touching, and a small blue flame appeared in between. The flame grew in intensity, banishing all the darkness in the tunnel before it sparked, and a huge gout of azure fire launched from her hands towards the gigantic panther. It struck its flank and stuck like napalm before she whipped her hands to the side, laying a thick layer of fire along the asphalt, melting the road as the flames burned bright, forming a wall of flame.

The heat was so intense sweat beaded along my skin from a dozen feet away, my face flushing as the air shifted into arid warmth. The flames licked at the Midnight King, whose mana was just about drained.

A low yowl rumbled from its throat as it searched for an escape from the blazing cage Adeline had trapped it in. Its eyes flashed with predatory fury, and in one swift motion, it flicked its barbed tail out, catching one of the large trucks on the bumper. The thick ivory spikes impaled through the metal like it was cardboard, and even as part of its body sizzled and cooked, it flung the truck back toward it.

It tumbled through the flames and created an impromptu bridge for it to escape. It hopped onto the cab, crushing it as it used the truck as a launchpad and leapt free of Adeline’s attack.

I don’t think so!

As the Midnight King jumped, I surged forward, aided by Demon Form. I raised my claws as Adeline canceled her spell to allow me through.

The Midnight King towered over me, half again as tall as I was, but I didn’t let its size dissuade me. As its eyes flashed, I whipped my hands in an arc, using Rend to cover the distance between us in a second.

Ten gashes rose from its fur, slicing deep into its muscle and spilling yellow down its powerful chest.

It screamed in pain, the ferocious roar staggered me, and my vision swam as my head pounded. I tried to blink my eyes clear, and by the time I had, the Midnight King turned, sending its tail hurtling toward me.

Rend was still on cooldown, and I wouldn’t be able to use it in time.

I prepared to cast Displacement in front of me, but as the spell was on the tip of my tongue, Finn barreled in front of me, a terrifying visage in his armor. His hand raised as Void Shield appeared in his outstretched palm.

The Midnight King’s tail met Finn’s shield and drowned in the abyss. Finn slammed his arm down, and as Void Shield dissipated, the Midnight King’s tail went with it. He’d bisected it nearly in half.

Bright blood gushed from the wound as the king leapt away. It paid no attention to its surroundings and fell back against a large panel van, denting it as the Midnight King scrambled to get away from us.

“Oh no! You’re not getting away that easily!” Finn shouted.

He held up his hand, and a small rift appeared in front of him. A miniature vortex of shadows. He plunged his hand into it and withdrew a massive claymore. It was pure black steel molded into an intricate, flowing design that dripped shadow.

Finn took a step and swung the massive blade down and caught the panther on its flank, parting its flesh with ease, scoring a thick gash until it stopped at the bone.

The king bellowed and thrashed about in agony. It shook, and an errant paw collided with Finn. He let go of the sword as he flew back and clipped a sedan, rolling with the impact.

Adeline and Salvatore were next to him, covering him as he struggled to shake off the hit and stand.

I didn’t wait for him. Demon Form only had half a minute before it timed out, and my mana was low enough that I only had enough for one more Displacement. But despite that, I grinned.

Let’s see how much damage I can cause in thirty seconds.

The others’ skill sets were highly effective at taking down the Midnight King’s mana, and we’d carved a good chunk of its health away. But it was still in the fight, wounded and bleeding, but not down yet.

I raced toward the beast, my feet gliding over the concrete as I vaulted a car and came face-to-face with the Midnight King. I ducked under another paw swipe as I primed Rend. As I got in close, I angled toward its bloody flank and unleashed my skill.

My claws flicked out and bit deep into its already weakened flesh. Ten vicious wounds poured blood out as its health plummeted.

The Midnight King snarled and snapped its jaws at me.

My back hit the overturned truck, and I couldn’t dodge. I steeled myself, and as its fetid breath rolled over me and ivory fangs lunged for my head, I brought my hands up.

It slammed into me with overwhelming force, but I ground myself, and as the undercarriage of the truck dug into my skin and the stench of oil and gasoline overpowered the Midnight King’s rotten breath, I gritted my teeth and pushed back. My bones creaked, and my muscles screamed at me as I held the top and bottom of its snout.

The Midnight King tried prying its way free, but my strength was just enough to hold it back. My arms shook with the strain, and it was only thanks to Demon Form that I could even match its strength.

If I didn’t do something in the next few seconds, I’d be devoured.

I smiled as its fangs pressed against my palms, and I cast Displacement.

The air in front of my face shivered as the sharp scent of ozone burned in my nose, and Displacement took hold inside of the Midnight King’s mouth.

It realized that something was wrong and quickly tried to back away, but it was too late.

As it whipped its head to the side, Displacement took hold. Half of its snout and jaw crumpled, morphing into an unrecognizable obsidian mass as it writhed before it swirled and disappeared, leaving behind a mess of blood and bone peeking out from the king’s jaw.

It recoiled with an ear-shattering howl that crumpled my psyche. My vision went white for a split second as something warm dripped from my ears as the Midnight King thrashed about. It backed away with a silent roar that thrummed through the soles of my boots as my sight returned, and I shook my head. Blood pounded too loud in my ears as the world quieted, save for a shrill whine that buzzed like a mosquito.

The king was a mess. Blood dripped through its ruined mouth, parting around its missing teeth as it tried and failed to close its jaw. Its barbed tongue hung limply to the side, a clear, viscous poison mixing with the blood that snaked down its chest and paws.

I wasn’t done yet.

An ineffable sensation tugged at the back of my mind, and I knew Rend’s cooldown had ended.

With a snarl, I raised my hands and activated Rend. Obsidian dominated my world as the blades ripped into the beast’s pulped snout and jaw. Monster blood splashed across my face as even more flesh and teeth scattered in an arc, clacking against the concrete as a bright red critical flashed overhead.

Rend carved deep into it, ripping apart even more of its head. But despite the massive amount of damage we’d done, the Midnight King was still standing, and underneath the rage and misery was pure, unadulterated hatred.

It would see me suffer if it could.

And I was swiftly running out of ways to kill it. I had ten seconds left on Demon Form, and then we would be at the Midnight King’s mercy.

Out of the corner of my eye, Finn stood, his Abyssal Armor cracked and weathered. Adeline and Salvatore beside him. Salvatore had his pistols trained on the king, but Adeline’s flames had snuffed out, leaving her holding her rifle tight to her shoulder. By the way, Salvatore wasn’t lighting up the beast any longer. He must have run out of his incendiary rounds.

If I was going to do something, it had to be now.

A glint of obsidian sticking out of the beast caught in the crimson glow of the flares, and a plan formed instantly. I tensed, preparing for one last charge.

Yellow flashed as the Midnight King turned to me, murder in its gaze. Even weakened, even in agony, it still wanted to tear into me. The monstrous panther lowered as it prepared to lunge at me.

We both moved.

It leapt into the air as I dove forward. I timed my movements as to where I thought the Midnight King would land, but there wouldn’t be much left of me to complain if I was wrong.

But my calculations had been true, and as the beast pounced on where I’d been standing, I rolled and came up alongside it, right where I wanted.

I turned, thrusting out with my hands, and they closed around the steel grip of Finn’s massive claymore. A frigid cold burned my palms, sending goosebumps up my skin as I wrenched the blade free. I groaned as the sword slid from its temporary sheath with a splash of blood and a tremor that vibrated up the edge.

As I ripped it free, I stumbled as the weight settled, and I had to use most of my enhanced strength to keep the sword from tipping over. My muscles quivered with the strain, and I brought it back, putting my entire body into wielding the blade.

Resistance met me as I turned and then gave way as the tip of the sword collided with a car, shattering the windows. Glass twinkled as it rained to the ground, and the Midnight King swiped one of its paws at me.

I turned the claymore just as its claws reached me, and steel met flesh. An arc of yellow scattered droplets all around me as I ducked the errant spray and whirled, gathering as much momentum as I could before I brought the blade up under the Midnight King’s throat.

Steel split fur and sinew as the sword carved a bloody swath across its neck. Blood poured in a river behind me as I followed through with my swing and ripped the blade free as I stepped through.

With one last flourish, I pivoted even as the last of Demon Form faded away and plunged the tip of Finn’s claymore through the ruined maw of the Midnight King and down its mangled throat.

Its luminescent eyes narrowed as the light slowly dwindled in them. The Midnight King’s destroyed mouth worked up and down, but whatever garbled last response it had fell on deaf ears.

The king gave one last huff, its breath sweeping up a cascade of dust as its body went limp, and the light was finally snuffed out.

Demon Form fled from me, and suddenly my body weighed a hundred pounds heavier. I staggered back, then stumbled to my knees as the fatigue I’d been ignoring flooded into me. I sagged against the ruined pickup and sat on the ground as my heart pounded in my chest, no longer caring about the thousands of picked clean bones littering the once-mighty Midnight King’s lair.

Then Finn and Adeline were next to me, shaking me while their mouths moved wordlessly.

I just grinned at them and laid my head back as I stared at the bright crimson smoke of the flares as it drifted around the ceiling.

Chapter 26- Overrun

After patching up my wounds and an hour of rest to allow the Mantle’s health regeneration to kick in and restore my bloody, bruised, and broken body, my hearing finally returned. When I was finished healing, I breathed a sigh of relief as all the pain that had settled around me vanished.

Oh, that’s much better than the intense agony I was in a second ago.

Before I got up to join the others, I pulled up my status.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Midnight Beast): 343 Exp!

1 Killed (Midnight King): 2856 Exp!

Experience Boost (27.5%): 880 Exp!

Total Gain: 4079 Exp!

AC Earned: 2,393!

Level Up!

I whistled.

Damn. That almost makes the several near brushes with death worth it for that kind of experience.

System Notice: Newport threat level has decreased!

Newport Threat Level: 11

System Notice: The Midnight King has been defeated!

Beast Skill Available: Shadow Mist

Shadow Mist (Rank 1): Conjures an aura of shadow around the user, allowing them to become intangible for a short time. All normal damage accrued is converted and drains mana rather than health.

Cost: 200 Mana

Damage Mitigation: 20% (Scales with Wisdom)

It was certainly an annoying skill to get around, and I’d seen its effectiveness firsthand. It was something I wanted, but I would have to level up my mana before using it. With how much it cost, and then the drain, it’d eat through my mana faster than anything else in my arsenal.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 550/550 (605)

Mana: 600/600

Stamina: 550/550

Level: 17

Exp: 2189/2462

15 Stat Points Available!

Wow, I nearly jumped two levels from that fight. But as I glanced at the experience needed to level up again, I frowned. Looks like my level wasn’t the only thing to jump up. The experience required also rose.

It looked like the days of easy grinding were over, and we’d need to really put in the effort to level up.

This means Charisma is going to need to come up again. I need to push that boost if I’m going to keep climbing.

Now I had to focus on my stats.

From the fight with the Midnight King, I’d found out that I needed even more firepower if I had any hope of taking on the mid-tier beasts, not to mention the kings.

With only fifteen, I had to prioritize Wisdom and Endurance, which just left me with five left. And after taking a few blows from the king, I knew I wanted more survivability, especially for New York.

Stat Page

Strength: 45

Constitution: 40

Perception: 25

Endurance: 40

Agility: 40

Wisdom: 45

Charisma: 45

As I hit select, a rush flooded through me, bringing a clarity to my mind that hadn’t been there moments before. It was as if my consciousness expanded, and the world got just a little bit brighter.

It had to have been the increase in Wisdom, and I wasn’t going to complain about the improvement.

When I was done, I finally stood with a groan.

“Can you hear us?” Finn asked, glancing over.

I nodded, scraping the last of the dried blood out of my ears. “Little louder than usual, but everything seems to be back to normal.”

“Good. Because we need to get moving and find some shelter soon, this whole thing was a detour we most certainly didn’t need.”

Salvatore walked up with his pistols in the holsters at his side.

His presence reminded me of the fight, and I grinned as I held my fist out to him. “Okay. I’m officially jealous. You were so badass during the fight.”

He looked down and smiled before bumping it. “It’s interesting to be able to put the skills of my old life to use in this new world of ours.”

I paused, realizing that I still didn’t know much about Salvatore. Clara had been the talkative one of the two. “What did you do in your old life? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“I was a gymnast. Not terribly famous, but enough that I could provide a good living for my sister and me.”

I blinked.

Really? Stoic assassin Salvatore was a gymnast?

It was such an unexpected answer that I couldn’t help myself. I laughed.

“Seriously? So that’s how you can move so well. Guess acrobat was the perfect class for you.”

He grinned at my red face, knowing I didn’t mean any ill will towards him. “It was indeed, though Graveling seems to be just as good, if not much better. I’m happy with my skills either way.”

“Hey, speaking of. What’d you guys think of my new skill? Pretty badass, right?” Finn asked as he and Adeline walked up.

I chuckled. “I think it saved my life is what it did. Though it surprised the hell out of me when a giant sword appeared from out of nowhere.”

He grinned. “It’s called Armory of the Abyss. Seems like I can manifest any weapons I want…as long as they aren’t too complicated.”

“So no Abyssal rocket launchers to blow our enemies away with a single strike?”

Finn laughed. “’Fraid not.”

I turned to Adeline. “What about you? Those blue flames were something else.”

“The spell is called Hellstream. It lets me continuously shoot fire from my hands, but it eats through mana quickly. I’m having to dump most of my points in Wisdom just to be able to keep up with my spells.”

“Well, it saved the day. You and Salvatore burned through most of its mana, which allowed me and Finn to deal damage.”

She smiled. “What can I say? We make a good team.”

“No arguments here,” Finn said. “But seriously. We should get moving. We can talk about our classes and strategize on the road.”

“Right.”

The four of us stood and gathered our belongings and set out.

We skirted around cars when we could and went over them when we couldn’t. It certainly made for slow progress, not to mention the numerous sounds we made. We had to constantly check that we were still alone.

But after about twenty minutes of not seeing any more Midnight Beasts, I had to speak up.

“We haven’t seen any more Midnight Beasts in a while.”

Salvatore nodded. “And they were crawling over us before. Think it’s because we killed their king?”

I shrugged. “Maybe. I wouldn’t want to fight something that killed my boss either. We didn’t see any more Charade Beasts after we killed their king, so that might be it.” I paused as a stray thought struck me. I slowed up and then stopped. “Here’s a thought. What if killing the king kills the beasts connected to them?”

Adeline stopped and looked back. “You think?”

“Maybe. It kind of makes sense if you stop and think about it.” I held my hands out and gestured at the surrounding tunnel. “This whole thing is like a massive game of chess. What happens if you take the king? It’s game over for the pawns, and the pieces get removed from the board.”

“An interesting theory,” Salvatore said.

“What about the Charade Beasts in the Sewers back in Grissom?” Adeline asked. “They stuck around even after you killed the king.”

“Yeah, you’re right about that.” I paused, thinking on it. “But that was a dungeon, right? Maybe it was a separate instance? If you think about it, we didn’t see any more of them after we cleared the Sewers.”

“Yeah, yeah. This is all fascinating, truly,” Finn said. “But is it really that important right now, while we’re stuck in the dark, dank tunnel filled with the bones of more people than I want to consider?”

“Ah. Good point.”

With that, we stepped up our pace and quickly made it out. Carrying the heavy duffel was taxing, but not nearly as much as it should’ve been for me. I thanked my added Strength, and we kept our eyes peeled as we exited the tunnel into the fading light of the sun.

New York City

Threat Level: 20

Status: Overrun

Holy shit, Grissom was only a six. I snorted. This isn’t going to be easy.

Though facing off against one of the Beast Kings right off the bat sets the bar pretty high for this nightmare.

We all saw the notification, and it had us on high alert.

Night came in quick, and we had less than an hour of daylight left, so we chose haste over caution and put some fire in our steps.

We took Canal St. and we tried to find a decent place to settle in for the night when I spied what looked like a hotel. I took a sharp left on Renwick St. and stopped at a red brick building with a glass awning with a black metal frame that read Arlo.

There was a faded plaque that said hotel by the door, so we went in without hesitation.

A fine layer of trash lay over a very fancy modern entryway. It almost looked like someone’s home rather than a hotel. A candy shop was to my left, while the check-in station was immediately to my right. Once sparkling white tile gave way to natural hardwood floors with a built-in bookshelf along the wall. A solid mahogany banquet table lay off to the side.

I checked through the lobby. Through a decorative pallet wood and driftwood archway at the very back lay a restaurant titled Harold’s. It was written on a burned-out neon sign. I peeked in and saw the remnants of a few dozen meals. Tables lay knocked over and had cracked the geometric patterned tile.

I finished my cursory search and found no signs of life, so while the others finished searching the rest of the first floor, I headed up the U-shaped wooden and glass staircase to the second floor.

Like most places in New York, this hotel was cramped, and the rooms showed. I had to look around for a master keycard, and I found one by the overturned cleaning cart. With my prize in hand, I unlocked the first door and propped it open so the others would know where I was.

Assign 231 Hudson St. as [Temporary Home]

Cost: 10 Coins

Y/N

Though our levels weren’t high enough to establish a safe zone, I still wanted the Well-Rested bonus, and I had plenty of coins to spare, so I accepted, then closed out the window as I entered.

The hotel room was a tiny studio. The door opened into the bathroom, which quickly gave way to the bedroom. In the month or so since the apocalypse, the room had been left abandoned, but it was still clean. Testing the water faucet and shower, I found that everything still worked, so I headed back out to meet up with the others.

They marched up the stairs a few minutes later, and we collectively searched the rest of the hotel but didn’t find a single soul. Once we concluded our search, I headed back to my room and left the others to sort out their own accommodations.

The water was hot and steaming, almost like a steam shower. It was wonderful and helped to unknot the tension in my muscles. I was tired, and it went well beyond the physical.

It’s been almost two weeks since this whole mess started, and I don’t think I’ve truly relaxed at all in that time…I miss Death.

It had been a couple of days since we’d spoken, and after I’d gained my memories, I missed her more now than ever before.

I had no idea when she would show up again, or where she went, or what she did while she was away.

Well, she’s Death. I’m sure she has more important things to look after than one human.

I still don’t know how to feel about her exactly. Part of me likes her at least, but the part of me I forgot is in love with her.

But it’s not something I have to decide on right away. We have plenty of time to figure things out.

The hot water never ran out, but I left before the heat started to flay me alive. I dried briskly off with a towel and threw on a T-shirt and pair of shorts before falling into bed.

In the morning, we didn’t linger around.

The four of us got up and met downstairs in the lobby for a quick breakfast and sat around the banquet table to discuss our plan of action, which had been vague at best, sorely lacking at worse.

Okay, the plan to get to New York was so we could power level. That doesn’t leave much to go off of. We can go hunting for monsters as much as we want. But what about quests? There has to be some holdouts or pockets of resistance here that we can link up with.

I thought about the best place for us to go hunting and see if there were any other survivors. There was a map stand next to the candy shop, so I grabbed one and unfolded it on the check-in station, knocking over several MacBooks in the process. Looking around, I found a ballpoint pen and started making marks on locations.

“The way I see it is that there has to be some remnants of civilization left. Maybe in parks or museums, stadiums, somewhere a large number of people could gather and be protected.”

Finn leaned over and marked Yankee Stadium. “If I were trapped, that’d be my first spot. Gate off the entrances, and you’d have a pretty decent little base.”

It made sense and seemed as likely a spot as any.

“Alright, then that’s our destination.”

With a plan in mind, we checked over our weapons and headed out. We were maybe five or six miles from Yankee Stadium, so we had some solid ground to cover in a short amount of time.

Once out of the hotel, we got on Hudson St., and from there, it was a straight shot until we hit 8th Ave.

Like the rest of the city we’d seen so far, it was in chaotic disrepair. Hundreds, if not thousands, of cars left to rust alongside trash from hundreds of thousands of garbage cans that blew about in the winter air.

Not to mention the monsters.

They were milling about, hunting in packs of two or three all around us. Never more than a half a dozen in any area, but they were everywhere.

Before we’d taken two steps, we dropped and drew our guns. Three of the reptilian Carnival Beasts fought over scraps of a dead dog covered in flies and hadn’t noticed us.

Without waiting for them to finish with their meal and come sniffing for us, I knelt and put three rounds into each of them.

Soon as I dropped them, the others around the streets perked their heads up at the noise and turned to glare at us with hungry gazes.

“Anytime you guys want to join in is fine with me,” I said before shooting.

They never had enough time to group up and swarm us, but they were fast, and if we didn’t immediately nail them with our first shots, then we ended up spending way too much ammo on each kill.

Combat Results!

4 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 408 Exp!

Experience Boost (27.5%): 112 Exp!

Total Gain: 520 Exp!

AC Earned: 100!

Level Up!

Once all the beasts were dead, I debated on dealing with my stats, but I could already see some more monsters in the distance, and it was clear our fight had attracted their attention. They were small, flying fast through the air toward us, and we raced to meet them.

As they got closer, I could make them out better and it was a beast that we’d never seen before. It reminded me of a gargoyle with thick and leathery gray skin with long wings and claws. Their eyes glowed a bright orange and as one flew overhead, it suddenly swooped down to snag a large rat. It snatched it up before landing high above and devouring the tiny rodent in its hands even as the others shrieked at us.

Monster (Mid-Tier): Statue Beast

Health: 200/200

Exp: 124

AC: 52

Despite how weak they were, they didn’t go down quite as easily as I imagined they would. I fired round after round at them, but they just pinged off their nearly stone-like skin, sending spurts of rock dust drifting to the ground. Eventually, after twenty or so rounds, I finally broke through its tough shell to hit something vital.

As a bright red critical rose over its head, it let out a hoarse, graveled shriek and burst apart in a miniature explosion, sending even more concrete chips and dust to rain down around us.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Statue Beast): 124 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 34 Exp!

Total Gain: 158 Exp!

AC Earned: 52!

Finn, Adeline, and Salvatore had just as much trouble dealing with theirs, and by the time the flying beasts were dead, we’d burned through a good chunk of ammo and were covered in pale white dust.

I spat as I wiped my mouth. “That does it. I’m trading in my submachine gun for something a little beefier when we locate a shop.”

“Or at least get some ammo that has better penetration.” Salvatore shook his head. “But I don’t think that’s going to be enough. These new mid-tier beasts are highly resistant to gunfire.”

“Yeah. But if guns aren’t effective anymore, what the hell do we use to fight them?”

“Good question,” he said.

Though no answer would come to us standing around the middle of the street.

But before we started back, I need to deal with my level up.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 245/600 (660)

Mana: 0/650

Stamina: 0/600

Level: 18

Exp: 405/2653

15 Stat Points Available!

“Not bad,” I said as I pulled up my stats. “But at the rate we’re going, we won’t survive. We’re burning through our mana and stamina just fighting off the beasts, not to mention our ammo. We need to find a place to stock up, and soon.”

“Too right you are, Hermano,” Finn said, reloading his shotgun.

The others voiced their agreement.

We need to play this smarter. Getting into a slug match every few minutes has us all worn down.

With a sigh, I went to allocate my stat points.

I didn’t even want to consider how much I was neglecting Perception, and it had been a long while since I’d dropped a point into it. If things kept up like they had been, I was certainly going to need more of it. Five went into it, while I put five into Agility, and five into Constitution. Which was a bit of a knee jerk reaction to all the monsters we’d encountered, but a safe, beneficial knee jerk reaction.

Which was better. Because reasons.

Though, once again, I had to discard Charisma just to keep myself alive, which caused me to snort with laughter.

Guess I can see why throwing all your stat points into Charisma would be a horrible idea. Can’t really get the most out of an experience boost inside the stomach of a monster.

Stat Page

Strength: 45

Constitution: 45

Perception: 30

Endurance: 40

Agility: 45

Wisdom: 45

Charisma: 45

After we handled our Mantles, we kept pushing on, but the further we got into the city, the more creatures we found.

They were everywhere, dozens upon dozens of them. None of them were particularly tough by themselves, but they just kept coming.

I don’t want to even think about how much ammo I’ve burned through in the last few hours.

All of us had been spending ammo like it was currency and we were on a shopping spree.

By the time we’d made it through most of the city, the four of us were bruised and bloody. Every block, we had to fight more of Callisto’s abominations.

The one bright spot was that I had been right, and the city was a jackpot for experience points.

Combat Results!

6 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 612 Exp!

4 Killed (Statue Beasts): 496 Exp!

3 Killed (Pallid Beasts): 672 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 489 Exp!

Total Gain: 2269 Exp!

AC Earned: 808!

Level Up!

When the last monster dropped, I checked to make sure nothing was close by and then instantly sagged down on a bench and helped myself to great heaps of air. The others looked to be in similar straits as they all crumpled to the ground and caught their breath.

After a moment, I pulled up my Mantle.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 176/650 (715)

Mana: 0/650

Stamina: 0/600

Level: 19

Exp: 21/2906

15 Stat Points Available!

Again, I couldn’t afford to drop any more points into Charisma when I needed every single one just to keep surviving. Five went to Endurance and Wisdom while I used the last to bring up Strength to give Rend some more bite.

Stat Page

Strength: 50

Constitution: 45

Perception: 30

Endurance: 45

Agility: 45

Wisdom: 50

Charisma: 45

My body ached as I hit select. Fire melted through me, setting my bones and muscles alight before pumping glass through my veins. It burned out the painkillers in my system, locking me up in perpetual agony for a split second before it receded, leaving me a sweaty mess in even more pain than when I sat down.

“Ah.” I choked on air, groaning as I stood from the ground. I brushed my sweaty hair back and basked in the winter chill that dripped snow across the street. “Damn. That wasn’t fun.”

“Hit another threshold?” Salvatore asked.

“Looks like it. Though I don’t know if it’s worth going through all that pain.”

He just shrugged and turned back to his Mantle.

When our stats were sorted, I glanced down at myself and grimaced. “Well, these clothes are ruined.”

The constant monster attacks and stat increases had thoroughly destroyed our clothing.

“Tell me about it,” Adeline said, and then grinned. “I say, while we’re in New York, we should at least go shopping.”

We all agreed, so we hit up the nearest clothing store and acquired some new clothes. My Kevlar vest was still usable, but the armored leather coat was pretty much a goner. I tossed it aside, grateful that it had served its purpose well.

I also traded in my military gear for a pair of espresso-colored chore pants and a raw denim button-up with a black wool pea coat and a brand-new pair of leather boots. I’d choose sturdy and durable over fashionable any day, but it never hurt when your clothes ticked both boxes.

The others wore similar attire. Adeline chose gray denim jeans and a black button-up with a navy-blue overcoat. While Finn and Salvatore dressed for the weather with thick pants and dark-colored shirts and overcoats.

All in all, we looked trendy, hip, and ready to kick serious ass in the apocalypse.

What else could we ask for?

Once our shopping spree ended, we took stock of our ammo.

“I’m down to two hundred rounds for my SMG and pistol. How about you guys?”

“Couple hundred for the SCAR, but my pistol ammo is dwindling.”

“Same here, I’ve got plenty of shotgun shells, but for range, I’ve been using my pistol.”

Salvatore just grunted and dumped out his duffel. Hundreds of 9mm rounds in boxes and magazines for his Berettas spilled out. “I’ve got plenty left.”

I just chuckled. “Alright, get your magazines loaded, and then take a short break before we get back out there. I want to reach Yankee Stadium before nightfall.”

After close to an hour to let ourselves heal, we got up and set off.

The city streets were worse as we got closer to the stadium, as we kept finding more and more signs of battle and slaughter. I stepped over thousands of spent shell casings, and even though the brown and yellow-brown stains were faded, I knew exactly what we were standing in.

We were told New York was overrun, but this is proof of that.

The wind picked up, and I was thankful for the new clothing. I buttoned my coat and fought down the chill. I had to focus on keeping us alive as we walked to Yankee Stadium.

We kept going, passing Madison Ave. Bridge and instead headed for 145th St. Bridge to cross the river to reach the Bronx. From there, all we had to do was crisscross a few streets till we hit River Avenue, and it was a straight shot to the stadium.

Though a few dozen monsters stood in our way, and if we wanted to reach the Bronx, we were going to have to go through them.

As we went into battle, we unleashed hell. With our enhanced bodies and skills, we were all more than a match for the packs of Carnival, Pallid, and Statue Beasts that littered the streets. And while a few at a time might not have been an issue, they just didn’t stop coming.

The others wanted to use their guns, but I told them to switch to their magic to conserve bullets since we had limited ammo.

I dismembered scores of them with Displacement and then used Rend on the few I missed, tearing them apart with my claws, which worked a hell of a lot better than my guns.

Adeline burned them to a crisp with her flames. Finn provided defense and kept them from ganging up on us while Salvatore danced around them, aiming for one-shot kills.

Our new skills and abilities were showing as we fought, and our added levels were helping tremendously, but even then, we were still running ourselves ragged.

Combat Results!

4 Killed (Carnival Beasts): 408 Exp!

3 Killed (Pallid Beasts): 672 Exp!

2 Killed (Statue Beasts): 248 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 365 Exp!

Total Gain: 1693 Exp!

AC Earned: 654!

Level Up!

I huffed as the last monster died, and silence once more stretched through the city street, broken only by our labored breathing and the drip of our blood as it splashed along the street.

Can this never-ending parade of monsters hold off for five fucking minutes!

“You know. And here I thought our levels were going to be slow to gain after we reached the city,” I said, breathless.

“It’s okay,” Finn said, his hands on his knees as blood trailed from several nasty gashes along his cheek. “We’re all allowed to be wrong at least a few times.”

Adeline chuckled, then groaned. “Don’t make me laugh. It hurts too much.”

Salvatore said nothing, just breathed in and out slowly, keeping an eye on the side alleys as he spun in a circle. Blood caked on his pant leg from a Pallid Beast’s errant claw.

I sat back, lying against a mailbox that likely would never see another letter as I pulled out my first aid kit, and grabbed the rest of my bandages and tossed them to the others.

Finn caught it. “Thanks, Hermano.”

I nodded. “You can buy me a new one when we finally reach civilization. Better yet, your own so I’m not the only one playing medic.”

“Deal,” he breathed.

I popped the pills, then wrapped my numerous lacerations that dotted my body so it would stop the bleeding long enough that my healing would start working.

When the drugs kicked in, I fished out a bottle of water and a protein bar, downing them in a hurry to get some sugar and fluids in my system before I passed out.

I’m so tired. I just want to rest.

But we couldn’t. Even this brief respite had to come to an end soon. We were still in the middle of a crumbling city infested with abominations, and they kept crawling out of the woodwork.

Even after a few moments to catch our breath and heal, I still groaned at the prospect of standing back up when Finn came over and offered me his hand.

He snorted. “I feel that, Kill. But, c’mon. We can rest all we want when we reach Yankee Stadium. They’ll have a makeshift beach, with cute girls in hula skirts serving piña coladas. All waiting for us.”

I laughed, grabbing his hand even as Adeline scowled at him.

He turned to her and winked. “You can join them. I’d love to see what you look like in a hula skirt.”

“Okay. I don’t need to hear your weird bedroom fantasies,” I said as I stood. “I’d rather take the monsters.”

Salvatore smirked. “Well, let’s get going, then.”

“Right.”

We stood and slowly gathered ourselves before pushing on.

With how things had been going for us since we got into the city, as we crossed 145th St. Bridge, I was expecting to be met with even more monsters. I was prepared to have to fight all the way to the stadium, but as we stepped off the bridge, we were met with a rather heavily guarded checkpoint.

Half a dozen heavily armed soldiers stood guard and pointed their weapons past us. They weren’t aimed at us, but they could be in under a second. I couldn’t really read the ranks on their collars, but a middle-aged man with a bald head and three-day stubble stared down at us with impassive brown eyes and spoke to us in a raised tone.

“Halt! State your name and class!”

Okay. Think fast.

“Killian Dunn. Class is Magician.”

“Prove it!” he snapped.

I shrugged and palmed Displacement. I aimed for a corner of their barricade, making sure no one was in the way. I cast the spell, and the air around the green steel grew hazy and warped. A nearly invisible sphere appeared in an instant and swallowed the corner whole, leaving a neatly carved crescent where the barricade had been half a second before.

The now crumpled and twisted hunk of metal dropped at my feet and hit the bridge with a thunk.

“Proof enough?”

The men gaped at me before they composed themselves. “What about the rest of your party?”

I gulped and hoped it didn’t show.

C’mon, guys, you’ve got this.

“Adeline Woods. Pyromancer.” Her hand lit up with Hellbent.

“Finn Aquilla. Gloom Knight.” He activated Abyssal Armor.

“Salvatore Russo. Acrobat.”

They each lied effortlessly, and I fought the smile that threatened my lips.

The soldiers grunted. “All unique classes. That’s a strong party you have. What’s your business here?”

“Looking for work,” I replied.

The man in charge stared at us for a long moment, deciding something. After some deliberation, he nodded and stood aside.

“We could always use more questers, so I’ll let you pass, but watch yourselves. We won’t hesitate to put you down if you cause trouble.”

I promised the man that we would behave, and we crossed the bridge.

Chapter 27- Yankee Stadium

The rest of the walk to the stadium was straightforward. There weren’t any signs of monsters or any corpses, for that matter. What we did see were regular patrols of soldiers and a strong military presence around the stadium. Something Finn commented on.

“Not a bad plan, from what I’m seeing. They probably don’t have the resources to guard the whole district, so they concentrated on guarding a single location with everything they have.”

“Yeah,” I said. “Makes sense considering the state of the rest of the city. No telling how many millions died and how many people are actually left…”

“I don’t even want to think about where the corpses of everyone are,” Salvatore said. “This place kinda feels like a last-ditch effort, which means a lot of people died before they got to this point. Where are the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of corpses?”

The answer was something I didn’t want to think about. Yankee Stadium couldn’t hold more than fifty thousand or so, and I doubted there would be even half that number, so it left a hell of a lot of people unaccounted for.

“Probably in places like Holland Tunnel. Out of the way, dark, and easily guarded.” I glanced down. “I suggest we try to stay out of the subway systems.”

The three of them shuddered as we continued. We reached the entrance to Yankee Stadium a few minutes later and were met with even more guards and a heavily fortified barricade. There were even a few tanks in the parking lot, along with a ton of military vehicles. The gray stone loomed overhead as we passed under a sign that read Gate 4.

As we approached, the familiar screen popped up.

Yankee Stadium: Tent City

Fortification Level: 30

New York City Threat Level: 20

Safe Zone: Active

A few men were talking just in front of the gate, and one of them turned to us as we approached.

He was tall, good-looking, with swept-back fine blond hair, bright blue eyes, and a movie star jaw. He wore bright white leather armor and had a golden sword belted at his waist. As he got closer, he flashed us a thousand-watt smile and held out his hand.

“Hi, there! Sorry to just walk up on you guys, but our soldiers reported a party of strong questers, and I wanted to meet you before you got swallowed up by the chaos inside.”

I frowned.

Another pretty boy. Though I have no real reason to be threatened by his good looks…still pisses me off, though. The Mantle has enhanced me, and I’m still not that handsome. Some people have all the luck.

“What can we do for you?” I asked, folding my arms under my chest.

“Actually, it’s what I can do for you. I’d like to help you navigate your way through the stadium, help you get your bearings, show you the ropes as it were.” His smile deepened as he finished speaking.

He definitely wants something. He said questers? So did the soldiers…is that what they call people who take quests to exterminate the monsters?

This guy wants us to take jobs for him. He’s just trying to butter us up first.

“And in return?”

The man tilted his head, his smile faltering somewhat. “Ah, that is…”

“You want us to run jobs, right?”

He sighed before nodding. “We could really use the help. There just aren’t enough of us to take every quest that comes in. Several a day, sometimes more. It’s a nightmare trying to deal with.”

I grinned and walked past him. “Should’ve led with that. It’s what we’re here for anyway. It just so happens our interests align.”

He did a double-take and ran to catch up. “Excellent! It will really help! My name’s Ray. I should’ve introduced myself earlier.”

“Killian. Good to meet you.”

We walked through the door and went into the concourse. While Yankee Stadium was pristine in the brochures I’d seen, reality and an apocalypse had a way to really fuck up the varnish.

The concrete tile had seen better days and was scuffed and worn from thousands of footsteps, and no one had bothered to buff them out while the world went to hell. Vinyl banners of baseball players still lined the curvature of the building as they wound out of sight, but they hadn’t been maintained and were sagging slightly.

Where there was supposed to be cleanliness lay untold destitution. Thousands of souls lay strewn about, huddled in thin blankets every few feet. Once concession stands, now slop kitchens and first aid station. Dozens of repurposed stalls now helped the refugees find some semblance of peace.

Even with Ray guiding us, it was too much. I swept my gaze from side to side as we all followed behind him. The sights and stench of misery were hard to witness. The people here had lost everything and were clinging to life by a thread.

I didn’t know where to go or what I was supposed to do. The despair was palpable, and I wanted to do something, anything, to help the people here.

Ray turned back to us. “You see what we’re having to work with here. People have just given up hope. We try to do what we can, but it’s never enough.”

He led us deeper around the concourse, stopping every so often to speak to one of the refugees. He seemed to know many of them by name and made a point to ask how they were doing or comment about a family member or a problem they were facing.

My opinion of him went up by several degrees. He seemed to genuinely care about the people here, and that was commendable.

It’s such a stark contrast to what I’ve come to witness in this new world of ours. People who are only out for themselves. It’s good to see some kindness here.

As we passed by one of the many soup kitchens, a man in a crisp military uniform came up to Ray.

“Sir, General Wescott needs you.”

Ray nodded. “Understood, I’ll be up to see him straight away.”

As the soldier walked away, Ray turned back to us. “Sorry, my duties never cease. I was hoping to give you a tour, but it looks like I’m going to have to cut it short.” His eyes lit up. “Hold up one moment.”

He made a beeline to the nearby makeshift kitchens, where a young woman stood working.

She was stationed in one of the soup kitchens, wearing a stained apron and helping to feed a massive line of refugees who looked famished. She was a cute girl, maybe nineteen or twenty, with curly chestnut hair and chocolate eyes. Though she looked exhausted, she was doing it without complaint and with a smile on her face.

Ray walked over to her and spoke for a short minute before pointing back over to us. After some back and forth, she nodded and whistled. A young man wearing similar attire came over and took over her duties as she took off her apron and walked over to us.

Underneath, the girl wore a pair of jeans that hugged her hips well and a loose-fitting white T-shirt with a sunflower on it.

She waved as she met us. “Hello! I’m Julia. Ray asked me to give you the VIP tour of this place.”

I held out my hand. “I’m Killian. It’s nice to meet you.”

Julia shook my hand and smiled. “Likewise. So, you’re questers, right? Must be pretty strong. Ray said your class is Magician?”

I nodded. “That’s right.”

She paused, a half-smile frozen on her lips for a second, before she shook her head and grinned. “Well, I’m here to help. What would you like to see first?”

We needed a lot to get situated; supplies, food and a place to stay, and the quest board. But after burning through our ammo like crazy just getting here, I knew what I wanted to check out first.

“Can we see the vendors? I’d like to get restocked first.”

She beamed. “Of course. Follow me!”

Julia led us around for a few minutes until we reached a section for the concourse that was less populated than the others. Along the walls were nearly a dozen of the silver machines I’d come to know as vendors.

Men and women stood around them, but these weren’t the starving, scared faces of refugees. They were lean, hardened—those who’d seen Hell and come out alive.

They must be questers.

Over twenty of them stood around the vendors, staring off into space, likely looking at the vendor screen.

“Well, I’ll let you guys shop for a little while. I’ve got a few things I need to check up on, but I’ll be back in about ten minutes or so. Sound good?”

“Sounds perfect, thank you, Julia.” I smiled at her and turned back to the vendor, tapping the screen.

All-purpose Vendor: Level 5

Available Shops

Food

Ammo

Medical

Weapons

Armor

Specialty

Unique

Huh, this is a lot different from the one back at Fort Alexander. There’re more options here.

I, of course, clicked on unique first, anxious to see what was inside.

Mantle Scanned!

Class: Demon Lord

Demon Lord Shop Opened!

Wait, what? A shop for my specific class?

I opened it with trembling nerves, excitement building before it immediately plummeted.

Everything is so unbelievably expensive.

Armor: Demon Lord’s Armor

Armor truly fitting of the Harbinger of the Apocalypse. Provides unparalleled resistance to both physical and magical damage. Especially hardened against Holy damage.

Conforms appearance to user’s desires.

(Torso Only)

Soulbound

Cost: 45,000 Coins

Armor: Demon Lord’s Gauntlets

Armor truly fitting of the Harbinger of the Apocalypse. Provides unparalleled resistance to both physical and magical damage. Especially hardened against Holy damage.

Conforms appearance to user’s desires.

(Hands and Arms)

Soulbound

Cost: 20,000 Coins

Armor: Demon Lord’s Greaves

Armor truly fitting of the Harbinger of the Apocalypse. Provides unparalleled resistance to both physical and magical damage. Especially hardened against Holy damage.

Conforms appearance to user’s desires.

(Legs)

Soulbound

Cost: 20,000 Coins

Armor: Demon Lord’s Crown

Armor truly fitting of the Harbinger of the Apocalypse. Provides unparalleled resistance to both physical and magical damage. Especially hardened against Holy damage.

Conforms appearance to user’s desires.

(Head and Neck)

Soulbound

Cost: 10,000 Coins

There were also Demon Lord’s boots and shoulder pauldrons, giving my entire body protection, but I blanched at the price of it all.

Over a hundred thousand coins for all of it!

I sighed, my hopes dashed. “Guess I found my end game gear, though.”

There was even a section of weapons in the unique tab and several locked sections that I couldn’t open.

I selected weapons, hoping for some more moderate prices, but again, I was disappointed.

Weapon: Demon Lord’s Sword

Forged in the 9th Hell by the Demon King of Misery’s blacksmith. This sword is sharp enough to sever reality itself. Will never dull or break.

Conforms appearance to user’s desire.

Soulbound

Cost: 15,000 Coins

There were the same exact descriptions for an axe, staff, bow, and more. Nearly every fantasy weapon I’d ever heard of, all priced the same.

Huh? I have been saying that I need to upgrade my weapons. But damn, that would eat up most of my coins.

Though I couldn’t deny that having a weapon that could go toe-to-toe with the monsters we were coming up against would be incredibly beneficial.

But before I went crazy, I really needed to know how many coins I had now.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 28,154 Coins

Food: 21 Day’s Supply

Water: 21 Day’s Supply

Status Effects

[Well-Fed] +10% Constitution!

[Well-Rested] +5% Exp!

[Flush (Max)] -25% Vendor Prices

Ammo

.45 ACP: 154 Rounds

Additional Items

Field Trauma Kit (High Grade): 3/10 Uses

I could afford it, but I didn’t know if I should. As powerful as it was, there was one glaring issue.

The only time I’ve ever held a sword was at Ren Faire. I wouldn’t even know how to wield the damn thing.

But I needed a better weapon. Had to have a better weapon.

Well, the best time to learn would’ve been before the apocalypse. The second best time would be now.

With a sigh, I selected the sword.

Thank you for your selection, Demon Lord. It appears you do not have the required proficiency to wield your new weapon. Would you like to purchase the requisite knowledge?

Knowledge: Swordsmanship (Novice-Grade): 200 AC

Wait. I can purchase knowledge? I chuckled. I thought that’s what college was for?

It seemed that there were different levels of understanding, from Novice to Grandmaster, which was a whopping ten thousand coins.

I sighed and selected intermediate, which was above apprentice but below expert. Besides, at a thousand coins, it was the highest I could afford.

I closed out of the unique shop with regret, promising that I would earn enough coins for the armor someday.

Though my spending spree didn’t stop there, thankfully, the specialty shop was much more accommodating. I immediately found a bunch of items I had to have, especially one singular item that would prove utterly invaluable.

Item: Spatial Storage Ring

Can store nonliving items in alternate dimension storage. Weight will not affect the user while inside the storage ring.

Weight Limit: 300 Pounds (Scales with Strength)

Soulbound

Cost: 1,500 Coins

Sold!

Having a storage ring or bag of holding was basic practice in RPGs, but more importantly, it would mean not having to lug around fifty pounds of equipment on our backs.

It was a must purchase, but I was really eating through my money. But with the Flush bonus, I was saving a good chunk on everything. I guess it was the Mantle's way of saying I was carrying too much money around, and it wanted me to spend more of it.

I would lose the bonus when I paid for everything, so I just added the ring to my cart alongside the sword while I shopped around some more.

There was also something incredibly unexpected in the specialty shop.

Item: Skill Point

Instantly gives Skill point. Can only be purchased 10 times.

Cost: 1,500 Coins

0/10 Purchased

I bought three right then and there.

I found a section in the armor tab that could modify existing clothes rather than buy new ones. I could instead enhance the ones I already owned. There were several options, including adding bullet resistance, magic resistance, even anti-tearing, and anti-fouling to keep them clean and looking new permanently.

All the options were a bit pricy, and I wasn’t as attached to my current clothes enough to purchase any of them.

I ended up buying another Kevlar armored coat, but this time it was a long double-breasted black pea coat like the one I wore, but this had higher resistances, so it was far superior.

After some deliberation, I went ahead and bought the anti-fouling and anti-tearing, so I wouldn’t have to keep buying coats.

For the coat and upgrades, it totaled over five hundred coins.

My vest was still serviceable, so I left it alone.

When my clothes were situated, I opened medical and found something surprising.

In addition to the numerous medical and field kits, there were potions available too.

A lot of them.

From stat boosters to health and mana potions to poisons and permanent effect potions like enhanced Strength or Perception. Those were thousands of coins each, so I stayed away from them, but I did select the health and mana potions.

Medical: Health Potion (Low-Tier)

Heals user for 500 health. Also removes any non-fatal ailments.

Consumes entire vial.

Cost: 100 Coins

Medical: Mana Potion (Low-Tier)

Heals user for 500 mana. Cures minor curses or mana poisons.

Consumes entire vial.

Cost: 100 Coins

There was also one for stamina, too, having the same effects. I snagged ten of each.

With all my other items taken care of, I just had to sort out ammo, and I’d be good to go.

But I also wanted a new gun.

The UMP45 was amazing, but at long distances, it left me at a disadvantage, and I wanted something that could bridge close, medium, and long-range all at once.

And in the upgraded weapons vendor, I found something that seemed to check every box I wanted.

Short-barreled rifles.

A few dozen of them were in all makes and varieties, but my gaze landed on one and stopped.

Weapon: Daniel Defense Mk18 (Military Issue)

A whole lot of bang in a small package. Kind of like you. Modified for military use. Very much unlike you.

You’ve proven halfway decent with a rifle, so you’re unlikely to shoot yourself on accident. Congratulations, you’re now barely qualified to operate a firearm. What do you want? A cookie?

Ammo: 5.56×45mm NATO Rounds

Condition: New (2% Firearm Failure)

Cost: 800 AC

It had been a while, so I’d forgotten how sarcastic Callisto’s little prompts could be. I ignored it and focused on the weapon.

The first rifle I’d owned was a Daniel Defense, and it had served me well until I’d gotten the M4. I liked everything about the rifles except the length. They just didn’t sit right in my arms. But it seemed like this one bridged the gap between submachine gun and rifle.

This one even had a full auto function.

I bought it along with the necessary attachments. Suppressor, foregrip with a flashlight and a red dot sight, costing another two hundred coins.

Then I opened the ammo section and bought a variety for the rifle, including some tracer rounds, but most prominently, I bought a load of green tip rounds which toed the line on armor-piercing.

All in all, the cost totaled over twenty-five thousand, but that was before my Flush buff took effect.

In the end, it cost just over twenty thousand coins, and having made my purchases, my stockpile of coins plummeted.

It put a serious dent in my wallet, and it was looking rather meager at the moment.

Resources

Apocalypse Currency: 8,064 Coins

Food: 21 Day’s Supply

Water: 21 Day’s Supply

Status Effects

[Well-Fed] +10% Constitution!

[Well-Rested] +5% Exp!

[Flush] –10% Vendor Prices!

[Locked and Loaded] +10% Ballistic Damage!

[Medic] +10% Healing from Items!

Ammo

5.56×45mm (Tracer): 300 Rounds

5.56×45mm (Green Tip): 400 Rounds

.45 ACP: 200 Rounds

Additional Items

Field Trauma Kit (High Grade): 3/10 Uses

Health Potions: 10

Mana Potions: 10

Stamina Potions: 10

When I finished, a weight settled on my hip. I glanced down to find a sword attached to my belt. The sheath was black leather, engraved with elegant lines and swirls.

I drew the blade.

The sword itself was steel that had been blackened to a midnight finish that matched the ornate pommel and guard. The handle was wrapped in black leather that matched the sheath exactly, providing the hand-and-a-half sword with a sure grip. Engraved into the recessed fuller were brilliant runes in a language I didn’t speak that lit up a bright orange when I wielded the blade.

It was a marvelous design, and with the knowledge I’d been given, it sat perfectly in my hand, almost an extension of myself.

So this is what my subconscious desires in a sword?

Weapon: Demon Lord’s Sword (Legendary)

Forged in the 9th Hell by the Demon King of Misery’s blacksmith. This sword is sharp enough to cut through reality itself. Will never dull or break.

Conforms appearance to user’s desire.

Legendary Effect: Unrestricted Growth: Grows exponentially alongside its owner

Damage: 75 (Scales with Strength)

Special Attack: (Locked)

It seemed the blade had more secrets that I had yet to unlock.

Something to look forward to, at least.

In any case, I sheathed it and heaved a sigh of relief when I was finished shopping. It had taken a toll on me, but by the time I was done, Salvatore, Finn, and Adeline had finished as well.

They’d also bought new clothes, though they kept it in the same vein as I did, warm coats in muted blacks and grays, and dark shirts and button-ups under their new armor. Salvatore didn’t bother with a vest since it would get in the way of his new shoulder holsters, but his jacket was definitely armored.

“All finished?” Julia asked as she padded over to us.

“Yes, thankfully. I hate shopping.” I heaved a sigh and leaned back on the silver vending machine.

She chuckled. “Can’t say the same, but it’s a girl thing.” She peered down at my hand, at the spatial ring now there. “Good call on the ring, but did you see an item called a teleport bracelet?”

I shook my head. “Nope. Why?”

“They’re extremely useful. The low-tier one lets you teleport yourself or your party back to any of your registered homes once a day. The higher tier ones can let you do it multiple times a day or even as much as you want.”

I gaped. “So, we can teleport, even hundreds of miles, as long as we have a home set up?”

“Only permanent homes, not temporary ones, but it’s still pretty amazing. For how awful the world is now, there are some pretty cool little gadgets.” Julia lit up and tapped her own spatial ring and pulled out a small silver bracelet. “I have a higher tier one. Ray gave us all one. So, you can have my old one.”

I held my hands up quickly. “I couldn’t just take it from you.”

“Nonsense, it’s a gift. Consider it a token of friendship.” She held her hand out to me. “We really could use your help in trying to better the lives of everyone here, and if you can help even the tiniest bit, it will make a huge difference.”

Her earnest and heartfelt attitude was endearing, and I couldn’t say no, so with a slightly red face, I took the bracelet from her. “Thank you very much. I hope we can help in any way we can.”

She beamed as I put the bracelet on, and it lit up.

Item: Teleport Bracelet

Would you like to travel to: Fort Alexander Room 103

Y/N

No.

As I stopped focusing on it, the bracelet stopped glowing.

So, I can travel back to Grissom or any place I designate as a permanent home in an instant. I’ll have to set one up here, but hopefully, that shouldn’t be too hard to find.

I turned to Julia. “Is there somewhere I can set as a home here?”

Julia nodded, motioning us to follow her. “Right this way.”

We walked around the concourse, taking a right and heading through a long hallway. We didn’t speak again until we reached a set of stairs and climbed them until we entered what looked like a press box overlooking the field.

All the technical equipment had been removed and replaced with a few chairs and a solid table with a map stretched over it. Pieces and details were written on it, but I was too far away to see what they said.

Julia led us to the glass and pointed out to the field.

I stared down at the stadium in shock.

Thousands of tents sat cloistered together, scattered all over the field. Huge white and blue tarps were attached to large poles overhead to stop rain and snow from falling on the field, but from the way the tarps sagged, heavy with icicles, water sloshing over the sides, it wasn’t very effective.

Tens of thousands of people were sitting in the stands or moving around on the field carrying food or supplies, but most just sat and stared lifelessly at the sky.

Holy hell, look at them all. I didn’t think it would be this bad.

The people down there looked like they’d given up. My jaw went slack, and I tilted my gaze away from the scene in front of me.

Julia stared down at the mess of people with pain and distress in her eyes, but her jaw was set. “Take your pick of tents.”

“Why are you showing me this?”

She inhaled deeply through her nose and out her mouth, long and slow, before turning to me. “Because I wanted to see your face when you took it in. It told me more about you than any words could. It warms my heart to see the same look in your eyes that’s in mine. Too many questers are jaded, uncaring when we show them what’s become of the city.

“But I’m afraid this isn’t a fitting place for questers to stay. You’d be much better off turning any of the nearby apartments into a permanent home than to stay down there with the refugees.”

I rubbed my chin, trying to take my eyes from the field, but it kept drawing my gaze. After some time, I sighed as my heartbeat rose.

The sight below burned in my chest. I didn’t want to stay here. To be surrounded by such misery and hopelessness. Even out on the streets, fighting had to be better than staying here to witness the last dregs of what was once one of the greatest cities in America, as it crumbled before my eyes.

“This place is so broken it can only cut us if we try to pick up the pieces,” I muttered.

“Yes,” Julia said. “But the important question is if you’re still going to try?”

I nodded. “I don’t know whether it will matter, but we’re willing to help.”

“That’s the spirit!” someone shouted.

I turned as Ray strolled through the doors in his leather armor, but he’d added a large caliber revolver to his hip. He walked past us and to the table next to the military man.

“I told Julia that you’d be excellent allies. I have a nose for this kind of thing.” He turned to her. “Did they pass your little test?”

She nodded. “I like them.”

“That’s what I thought. Well, welcome to the team, guys.” Ray waved us over to the table. “Well, come and see what we’re dealing with and let’s set you four up with a quest. Something a little dangerous, but that pays well.”

I paused and narrowed my eyes. “Another test?”

He waved us off. “Oh, no. You just seem strong. I don’t want to waste your time with small fetch quests or middling exterminations. They need to be done, but the pay is garbage, pardon my language.”

I walked over and looked the map over. It was of New York, but a section of it, the Bronx, was circled in red marker and littered with scribbles and post-it notes. Several army men, literal army men, were dotted around. Two were stationed at the 145th bridge, where we’d crossed, so I guessed them to be checkpoints.

“We’ve had an increase of monster activity around Central Park the last few days, and we’re losing good men trying to clear them out and keeping them from pushing closer toward us. Not to mention the extra manpower is leaving the rest of our perimeter vulnerable, so I’d like for your party to head over there, figure out what’s going on, and put a stop to it.

“I won’t lie. It’s probably going to be dangerous. Mid-tier beasts are rampant in that area, but this speaks of something bigger. Maybe a high-tier or even a boss-tier monster. Are you up to the challenge?”

I looked up from the map and at my friends. Finn gave me a thumbs-up while Adeline and Salvatore nodded.

I turned back to Ray. “You can leave it to us.”

He nodded, a smile forming across his lips as his eyes glowed with delight. “Excellent!

Investigation Quest: Lost in New York

Discover the reason for the increase of Beasts near Central Park and put a stop to it.

Difficulty: Hard

Reward: 3050 Exp

1,263 AC

I accepted the quest and turned back to my friends. “You guys ready to head back out into the concrete jungle?”

“You know it,” Adeline said. “Let’s get to grinding.”

Chapter 28- The Statue King

With all of us in agreement, we checked over our weapons and left. We were three miles from Central Park, and I was betting it wouldn’t be a casual stroll. Once we left the safety of the stadium and passed the checkpoints, we’d be swallowed up by the chaos of the city.

I really didn’t want any surprises for us, and I thought it was time to use one of the stat points I’d bought.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 650/650 (715)

Mana: 700/700

Stamina: 650/650

Level: 19

Exp: 1714/2906

Skill Points Available: 3

With my new skill points, it took nearly everything in me not to spend them instantly. Shadow Mist, Barrier, and Coagulation were all skills that I desperately wanted. But I couldn’t just buy them because I wanted them. This wasn’t a game where I could respec if I screwed up and made a bad choice.

I had to play this smart.

My mana isn’t anywhere near enough to grab a bunch of spells. Shadow Mist is powerful, so is Barrier, but they have such a high mana drain that I wouldn’t be able to use them effectively right now. When I get stronger, then I can think about them.

But for now, there’s one ability that I think could come in handy, but I just didn’t want to waste one of my few skill points on it. Now I can.

I selected it and bought it.

Demonic Gaze (Passive): Grants user perfect night vision and the ability to sense the flow of mana in the world. (Can be combined with Tracker and Bloodhound skills)

Cost: 0 Mana

It was like someone had jammed two ice picks in my eyes. Agony shot through my head for a split second before the pain receded and my vision returned to me. When I blinked the tears away, the world seemed brighter, more colorful. The gray-washed buildings were mottled now, a hundred different shades to them rather than a uniform city.

I cried out when the pain hit me, and the others stood around, staring at me with concern.

“Kill, you okay?” Adeline asked.

I nodded. “Yeah, just picked up a new skill. It hurt worse than I was expecting.”

Salvatore hummed. “A skill hurt? That doesn’t sound right.”

I stood, and when I looked at them, they gasped.

“Holy shit.”

“What─” I stopped and sighed. “Alright, what happened to my eyes?”

It was the only explanation I could come up with.

“Uh, hold up. You may want to see for yourself.”

Adeline pulled a small mirror from her spatial ring and handed it to me. I took it and groaned.

Damn, I wish I’d have known. I might not have taken the skill if I had.

My eyes had changed slightly. They were still a pale, ghostly blue, but my pupils were now thin, golden slits, like a cat’s.

I sighed and held the mirror away from me.

“Well, it’s not that noticeable from afar, but if anyone gets close, they’ll know. Looks like I need to find a new cover story.”

Finn nudged me with his elbow and clapped me on the shoulder. “I dunno. They’re not inherently demonic. Could still pass for a Magician. Which, by the way, was a brilliant little lie.”

“Thanks, you were pretty quick on your feet with yours too.” I snickered. “But seriously, Gloom Knight? That’s a strange name.”

He shrugged. “It’d be a cool guild name. Eh?”

I just shook my head as I pulled out the map I’d taken from the hotel and checked our route. That done, we set off.

It didn’t take long for us to run into our first pack of monsters, about five of the large lion-esque Pallid Beasts. They turned at our footfalls, but we didn’t give them a chance to react.

With Displacement primed, I fired off two quick spells, absorbing huge chunks of their bodies and scoring several critical wounds.

As the mass of meat and sinew landed at my feet, I unslung my new rifle and flipped the safety off. A quick pull of the trigger sent a cascade of bullets into the seeping wounds my magic had rendered. Bright red numbers lit up over their heads as my rounds punched holes through the beasts.

Combat Results!

2 Killed (Pallid Beasts): 448 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 123 Exp!

Total Gain: 571 Exp!

AC Earned: 300!

By the time I’d killed my two, the others had taken down the rest of the pack. Pride filled my chest as I stared at my friends with fierce smiles across their faces.

We’ve grown stronger, but I shouldn’t let that make me overconfident. This city hasn’t bared its fangs quite yet.

As we continued, the monsters thinned significantly.

There were fewer beasts out as we got closer. A handful or more at any given time, but mostly they traveled in pairs or only one at a time. We gave them a wide berth when we could and slipped past without conflict.

After an hour or so of walking, we were at Central Park, staring at the remnants of a massive tent city.

Cheap metal dividers and white tents were everywhere, along with the discarded remains of food wrappers and water bottles, medicine, and a myriad of things tossed about amid thousands of blackened, desiccated corpses. None were whole. They were all torn to ribbons and in the later stages of decomposition.

The still winter air kept the smell from drifting towards us, but the sight was more than horrifying on its own to make me want to hurl up my breakfast.

This is what the beasts are capable of. Even to those with skills and classes, they were no match for Callisto’s pets.

“So, this is what they meant when they said New York was overrun. We shouldn’t be here, quest or no,” Adeline said, covering her mouth with her forearm.

“This place gives off a sinister aura. It’s unsettling. And we haven’t seen any monsters in a while. I don’t know what the quest was hoping for us to do, but we’re not going to find answers here,” Salvatore said and backed away.

They’re right. The quest said to investigate, and Ray said that there were more monsters around here. Well, the dead bodies would probably be the cause of that, but even if there are a million corpses throughout Central Park, it doesn’t come close to the number of people who used to be in the city.

We turned away and quickly started walking, canvassing the area for any signs that would help us make sense of the quest.

“Anyone wondering where all the monsters went? I’ve only seen a couple of Carnival Beasts and one Pallid Beast in the last few minutes. This area was supposed to be overrun. If that was true, then where are the rest?” Adeline asked.

“My guess is something is keeping them away from this area. Good news, it might be some questers. Bad news, it might be a giant fucking Lovecraftian monster who melts our minds. Anyone want to place bets?” Finn asked.

Adeline and I laughed, and even Salvatore grinned.

“I’ll take that action,” Adeline responded.

“Alright, I’m game. What are we betting?”

“Hmm,” Adeline paused, running a hand through her hair. “Two hundred AC says it’s just a bunch of questers playing janitor.”

“I’ll take those odds,” Salvatore piped up from the back.

I waved them all off and scanned my surroundings. Nothing but the wind blowing trash and detritus through quiet streets. “Alright. Bets have been placed. Now let’s keep searching the area and investigate like we’re supposed to.”

“Alright, you heard Captain Killjoy. Fun time is over.” Adeline glanced over at me with a teasing grin.

I jabbed my finger at her with absolutely no heat. “Watch it. You’re close to being demoted back to underling. If you’re not careful, I’ll promote Salvatore to henchman ahead of both of you.”

She pouted, but her eyes lit up. “What’s he got that I don’t?”

“Subtlety.” Salvatore smiled as he spoke.

We all laughed as we walked through the streets. But even with our moods so high, something unsettled me.

The more we searched, the more foreboding the area became, like a ghost town. Desolate buildings and streets with only empty cars and cracked cement to keep us company.

After another few hundred feet of not seeing anything at all, a chill settled in my eyes and then crawled down my spine. It was a familiar sensation, only so much more pronounced. I recognized the icy pulse that slithered over the back of my neck.

The same presence that trailed us from Newport had returned. Something had eyes on us again.

This time, I was certain.

“We’re not alone, guys. Something’s watching us.”

Everyone stopped and crouched, looking around for enemies, but after a frantic search around us, they came up empty. There was nothing or no one with us on the street.

“I don’t see anything. Are you sure you’re not paranoid?”

“No,” I said with a shake of my head. “Something's been following us since we were in Newport.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Adeline asked.

“Because I half assumed it was the Midnight Beasts, but this time I’m certain. Demonic Gaze seems to have affected my perception a bit. Something is watching us right now.”

The heaviness persisted, and the intensity increased until I nearly choked on the malice directed towards us.

Whatever it was, it hated us, and it was furious.

A ruffling from above caused me to jerk my head up.

Something large darkened the clouds before a charcoal gray creature with an elongated body broke through them and plummeted towards us. The draconic beast unfurled its wings and glided to the skyscrapers surrounding us.

It gouged huge chunks from the building as it landed, its massive talons digging into the concrete, shattering dark tinted windows. Glass glinted in the sunlight as they fell to the asphalt like drops of rain.

The monster’s movements were stiff as it slithered along the building. Cracks appeared up its limbs and down its body, spiderwebbing out as it moved. Concrete dust spilled and drifted down like snowflakes, and from within the fissures, a bright orange welled like blood and dripped out, lighting up its body as if lava flowed through its veins.

It turned its head as more cracks spread over its mouth, and as its glowing orange eyes glared at us.

“Um, is that a dragon?” Adeline asked.

Inspect.

Monster (Boss-Tier): Statue King

Health: 15000/15000

Mana: 8000/8000

Exp: 5463

AC: 4,000

“Nope, it’s a fucking Lovecraftian monster who wants to melt our brains,” I said.

“Um, can I take back my bet?” Finn asked.

“’Fraid not.”

“Shit, well, then let’s kill this thing.”

The crumbling vacant-eyed stare of the enormous concrete dragon was haunting as it narrowed its eyes with far more intellect than most of the monsters we’d faced.

It’s one of the kings, so it will have human intelligence.

It stared down at us from the side of the building. Each time it moved, more dust and blood appeared from within the cracks.

The Statue King wasn’t attacking us. It was just looking at us like it was waiting for something.

Finally, it spoke in a heavy, gravelly voice like stones grinding together. “Demon Lord.”

The last thing I wanted was to get into another debate with a monster about how I was a traitor, but I needed to stall for a bit of time.

That thing has fifteen thousand health. How the hell do we beat it?

I turned to the others, who were staring at the beast with the same obvious thoughts flowing through their heads.

“Guys, you got any ideas?” I asked in a hushed whisper.

Finn shook his head. “No, Hermano. All of my new skills are close quarters. I’m useless at range.”

“Adeline?”

“Maybe, Hellstream could probably do some damage, but it doesn’t have any flesh, so I don’t know what the hell my flames are going to do to it.”

“We’ll figure something out. Just stay on guard. I’m going to try and bring it down.”

I didn’t really know what Displacement’s limits were, but it was my best spell if I wanted to even the playing field. The best result would be if I could remove its heart. A perfectly timed Displacement spell, and that would be the end of it. Though I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be that easy.

As I tried to cast Displacement, some ineffable tug on the back of my head told me that it wouldn’t activate. That it wasn’t strong enough to penetrate so deep into the Statue King.

I snorted. “Yeah. Knew it wouldn’t be that easy.” I frowned and held up my hands. “Alright, you big ugly garden ornament. Let’s see how you like this.”

Once more, I cast Displacement. This time I aimed for its front leg, the one gripping the side of the building. Displacement activated in an instant, and an invisible sphere the size of a tire consumed the space where the dragon’s leg had been, severing it almost entirely, but it wasn’t enough.

It roared a deep, unending bellow that thundered through my bones. The Statue King shifted, trying to dislodge from the building, but I was faster.

I gritted my teeth, forcing down the pain of its roar. “You’re not going anywhere!”

I cast it with my off-hand, aiming for the other side of its leg. This time, it neatly cut through the rest of its foreleg. Two huge chunks of the dragon appeared in front of me as I took its leg.

The Statue King lurched to the side, its newly acquired stump sending a rush of the roiling magma of its blood pouring out and dripping down the building, melting through the concrete. It tried to right itself, but the weakened building crumbled under its grip, and the dragon lost its balance.

It toppled off the building, trying to use its wings to stabilize itself but failed before it crashed to the street below it, cracking the pavement and crushing more than a few cars under it as it landed.

As I looked at its health, I couldn’t help but grin. My opening move and the subsequent crash had taken nearly three thousand of its health.

A good start.

Without a word, the others sprang into action.

Finn summoned his Abyssal Armor, and with a smirk, two massive axes drenched in swirling shadows appeared in his hands. He took off like a rocket for the dragon, his massive legs covering the distance in a few seconds as he leapt into the air and brought both axes down on the stone dragon’s hide.

The blades of darkness cut through its stone flesh with ease as Finn scored two deep gashes across its flank. Steam curled from the wounds as it bled its lava-like blood that stuck to Finn’s axes and melted the metal.

His axes twisted and warped as the dragon let out a low hiss.

Finn backed away and laughed, his bright, shadowed face lighting up as the axes dissolved in his hands and reformed in a second. He now wielded the claymore that I’d seen before. He stepped and brought the blade down, hewing a third laceration that bit deep.

The Statue King turned, lashing out with its tail. More cracks spit down its length as blood oozed, and it whistled, trailing dust in its wake as it angled for Finn’s chest.

He stood impassive, switching his claymore to his off-hand as if were as light as a feather, and he brought his palm up. Void Shield appeared as its tail struck. The drowning abyss swallowed a mouthful of the dragon’s tail before the momentum died, and it tried to pull back. Finn pressed his assault, swinging his sword down at the retreating tail.

It snipped a thin section off before the Statue King could bring its tail safely back.

The king roared and lunged at Finn. He was too slow with the added weight of his armor and sword and couldn’t get away in time. It scooped him up before any of us could move and clenched its claws tight.

Metal squealed and then crumpled, and Finn let out a horrid yell that was swiftly cut off by the dragon’s shout of fury. It threw Finn several dozen feet before he slammed into a parked taxi, buckling the driver’s side door in as he landed with a dull thud.

“Finn!” Adeline shouted, and screamed in absolute rage.

Her hands lit up with her crimson flames as she hurled them one after another at the beast. They stuck like glue and burned deep into the stone, but Adeline wasn’t finished by a long shot.

She cast Conflagration and enveloped the Statue King within her circle of flames. The fire started eating away at the dragon’s scaled limbs and cracking the stone even further. A puff of concrete dust billowed out from one of the cracks, and there was a massive explosion as the tightly packed dust hit the fire.

The dust explosion ripped huge chunks of stone from the outer shell of the dragon and exposed its pale, magma-lined skin to us.

Adeline noticed and screamed even louder. “I’m not fucking done with you yet!”

A small black flame flickered to life on her index finger, and she flicked it at the dragon. It stuck to the dragon’s flesh and burrowed into its body, ethereal black smoke trailing from the wound it made while the dragon groaned as its insides were cooked.

The spell kept up for a few more seconds until Adeline ran out of mana and sagged to the ground, sweating bullets.

We’d taken a third of its health in the first few minutes, but Finn and Ade were both out of commission, and I had no idea if Finn was even alive. Though I worried for my friend, I couldn’t focus on that because as soon as Ade dropped, Conflagration and whatever new spell she used flickered out.

I ran up and pulled a mana potion from my spatial ring, tossing it to her.

“Drink up.” As she caught it, I tossed her a health potion. “Go heal Finn. Sal and I can take it from here!”

Though I had no idea if that was true, Adeline had the most offensive capabilities with her magic, and Finn was a tank. Salvatore and I were not really equipped to handle a monster of this scale by ourselves.

But regardless, we had to try.

Salvatore had been firing nonstop at the beast since we began, but his bullets had pinged harmlessly off the statue's concrete skin. He’d switched targets when Ade blasted a hole in the side of it, but his shots were scoring superficial wounds at best.

I unslung my rifle and peppered the Statue King. The green-tipped rounds punched into its body, scoring a few minor injuries, but from the way the beast's health barely ticked down with each shot, I was just wasting my time.

Salvatore realized the same thing as I did and vaulted over a bike rack before hitting the sidewalk and vanishing as he used Bridge. He teleported on top of the Statue King and ran up the dragon’s neck. Salvatore grabbed hold of one of the many spiked ridges leading to the dragon’s forehead and swung around to shove the barrels of his Berettas into its eye.

He grinned as he emptied his magazines.

The tortured howl of pain that erupted from the dragon’s mouth was enough to cause me to wince in pain from nearly thirty feet away, and satisfaction dug into my heart at the retribution for hurting Finn.

I could only imagine the pain that Salvatore was in, but he bared it like a champ and shrugged it off as the Statue King reared back his head and slung Salvatore off.

He flew towards a crumbling brick building, but just before he crashed into it, he turned, using Bridge in midair to jump right back on the dragon. He held out his hand, and a bright green spike appeared in his palm. It oozed and dripped smog as Salvatore reared back and shoved it into the Statue King’s neck.

As soon as his attack landed, the dragon's health began ticking away at an increasing rate, losing several hundred points every few seconds.

With that, Salvatore used Bridge once more and appeared beside me.

“What did you do?” I asked.

“Poison Spike,” he said with a grim smile. “A continuous stream of poison that drains the target’s health until my mana runs dry…which should be in a minute or two.”

“Well, stop the spell. I need you on your feet. This bastard is still standing, and I don’t want to fight him alone.”

Salvatore nodded and cut the spell. The green glow around the dragon faded away, and the dragon moved its massive frame up off the ground.

“Why don’t you use your Demon Form?” he asked.

I shook my head. “Can’t. Not yet.”

“Why?”

Adeline’s voice cut through the air, saving me from answering.

“Kill, I need you!”

I looked over and back at Salvatore. “Keep his attention for a minute!”

“Got it!”

Salvatore kept on the move, firing at the one remaining eye of the Statue King while I went to check on Ade and Finn.

Finn wasn’t moving when I got over to them. His armor had faded, revealing numerous lacerations, as well as his arm that was bent at an unnatural angle. Blood soaked into his shirt, welling from somewhere on his body, and dripped down the back of the taxi to the pavement.

Why didn’t the potion work?

I asked, and Adeline held it up. “He’s stuck, and something is holding him in place. If I heal him while it’s still inside him…” she trailed off, leaving me to finish her thought.

“He’ll be just as bad off.” I nodded. “Alright.”

I lifted his head to check that he was still breathing. He was, but it was faint. With Adeline’s help, we pulled him from the crumpled shell of the car and laid him down. The blood was coming from a jagged four-inch shard of steel that had punctured his back; the gouge was deep, and when we pulled, a gush of blood spurted from the wound.

He’d bashed his head against the door hard enough to knock him out, but he would live. I unstopped the small vial of red liquid and poured it down his throat. Finn glowed slightly as the potion healed him. I set him down and looked at Adeline.

“Take care of him. I’ll go finish off the giant stone asshole.”

From a glance at the thing’s health, he was down to just over half. Which, while incredible, the others had thrown everything at it and were spent. I still had a few Displacements, and all my Rends, but I was hesitant to go all out against the Statue King.

Because there were still eyes on us. Ones that had nothing to do with the beast king in front of us.

I caught up with Salvatore as he reloaded his pistols. The loss of the dragon’s leg meant it wasn’t very mobile, but it still had its wings. I didn’t want it to take to the skies if I could help it, so I rushed in, hip firing with my rifle at its face to keep it distracted.

A few seconds later, and my gun clicked empty. I dropped it, and the sling cradled it against my chest as I reached the king. Rend burned from my fingertips and slashed across its jaw, splitting the stone all the way to its long, charcoal teeth.

The Statue King’s head snapped to the side from the impact, its burning blood leaking from the gashes.

As it leaned away, I pivoted and brought my hand up, casting Displacement. It bubbled to life in a hazy mirage over the Statue King’s right wing, where it connected to its spine. Displacement gulped down the dragon’s stone flesh and severed the wing from its body before spilling the bloody remnants at my feet.

The monster snarled and spat a thick gob of magma out as it stumbled forward, a low growl building in its throat. We’d trapped it, cornered it, and its fury dripped out of every wound we’d rendered.

I had two more Displacements available, and I aimed for its other leg and fired it off. The dragon shifted suddenly, and all I managed to grab was a chunk of asphalt. I tried to use it again. I aimed for its leg once more and I snagged half of its foot.

It took a small chunk of its health away, but I’d wasted my last Displacement spell. I used up my mana, and unless I wanted to burn a potion, I’d have to rely on my remaining Rends.

Salvatore Bridged in front of the beast, dodging an errant swipe.

When the attack didn’t land, the Statue King howled and opened its mouth. A gravelly crunch echoed from its throat as ash began spilling from its jaws. It coughed and then let loose a torrential gray miasma.

It poured from its mouth and rushed onto the street. It billowed out, coating everything in a fine powder as it settled over the road and abandoned cars. Ash drifted about, and a stillness unbefitting our battle settled around us.

Then there was a single crack before jagged shards of concrete erupted from the ash. Cars crunched as they were torn apart. The street rumbled as the concrete hardened in an instant, forming deadly spikes that shattered glass and punched through metal like it was cardboard.

Shit. Petrification!

“Everyone, get back! Don’t let the mist touch you. Adeline, take Finn and clear the area!”

The Statue King opened its maw to unleash more of the gray mist, but we kept out of its reach. It couldn’t travel more than a dozen feet in front of the dragon before stopping.

Or so we thought.

The stream that rushed out was far more condensed than before. It shot out like a geyser and surprised the three of us. Adeline and Finn were to the side and out of range, but Salvatore and I were smack in the center of it.

I moved to escape the incoming cloud, but I wasn’t fast enough. Salvatore was, though. He Bridged the gap between us and teleported us away.

We appeared a few dozen feet away, and he let go of me.

“Thanks for the save.”

He nodded. “What are friends for? So, what’s the plan to beat this monster?”

“Kill it. Not die,” I said.

“Short, to the point. My kind of plan. What do you need from me?”

I paused, which was something one should never do in battle, but the Statue King was far enough away and weak enough that I had a moment to work out my strategy.

It was weak now. We’d taken well over half its health away. A few more well-placed strikes should finish it off.

But we’d have to get close to it.

Which meant dealing with its Petrification. If it landed, it would spell the end for us. We had no way of curing Petrification.

Though we only have to worry about it if the dragon can catch us.

“Sal, can you Bridge me?”

He grinned, nodding. “I like your style.”

Salvatore placed his hand on my forearm. In an instant, we were on top of the Statue King.

I steadied myself and ran to its neck. Sometime during the fight, it had taken damage and was slightly cracked and bleeding, which only helped my plan along. I brought both arms down and I activated Rend simultaneously. Ten points of darkness rose over my fingertips and lashed down at its damaged stone skin.

Rend’s crescent blades hewed thick furrows of stone from the beast, each one carved deep into its neck, leaving behind long gashes which quickly filled with steam and blood.

The king howled in agony and bucked, writhing as he tried to throw us off. It ripped large chunks of concrete up as it thrashed, tearing up the asphalt. Its tail struck a parked truck and crumpled it, sending the wrecked vehicle skidding across the street and into the cheap metal gates, into the side of a building.

As the king tried to throw us off, I grabbed one of its spikes and held on as Salvatore and I fought to regain our balance.

When we could stand, I knelt over the wounds and unleashed another pair of Rends right on top of them, dealing critical damage as the second salvo carved even deeper into the bleeding flesh of the beast.

Salvatore kept the king’s attention by teleporting around and shooting at its vulnerable, weak points, never standing still long enough for the Statue King to unleash its Petrification breath.

When Rend cooled down once more, I unleashed one final round that slammed into its spine.

In the thirty seconds, I’d nearly exhausted my stamina, but I had one more move left.

As boiling magma cascaded from its ruined neck, I drew my sword. It slid from its sheath with a rustle of leather before it lit up with a fiery glow, not unlike the blood that ran perilously close to my feet.

With every last bit of my strength behind my blade, I rose it overhead and plunged it as deep as it could go into the Statue King’s neck. It slid through its meat and sinew, only slowing when it hit its spine, but I knelt, shoving as hard as I could before the blade slammed into the hilt, slicing through its spine.

I twisted and pulled the blade free.

The Statue King shuddered and lashed out with its remaining wing. It caught me in the shoulder, and I went sideways. The world spun as I tried to find my balance, but with its spine severed, its body was lifeless, and I fell, sliding down its leg before I kissed the concrete, and pain dominated my world.

Movement from next to me flicked past my sight before my vision blurred, and I was a dozen feet from the king, with Salvatore next to me.

I shook off the hit and stood, groaning.

“Thanks,” I said, pulling out a mana and stamina potion and chugging them both.

“Of course.” He nodded to the king. “Looks like it’s on its last legs.”

Salvatore was right. The once impenetrable Statue King was a mess of blood and missing flesh. Pieces of it were scattered around the area as it lay crumpled on the street, its breath blowing dust all around.

There was only a sliver of its health remaining.

It was time to finish this.

But before I could take a single step, there was a chuckle from a deep voice.

From high above in the clouds, a radiant golden spear thundered through the sky, racing towards the weakened dragon. It skewered through its head and obliterated its skull. The Statue King’s head blew apart like a burst bubble and exploded across the street and buildings. Magma gushed from its ruined neck as the body went still.

Combat Results!

1 Killed (Statue King): 5463 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 1502 Exp!

Total Gain: 6965 Exp!

AC Earned: 4,000!

Level Up!

Investigation Quest: Lost in New York Completed!

Discover the reasons for the increase of Beasts near Central Park and put a stop to it.

Difficulty: Hard

Reward: 3050 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 839 Exp!

Total Gain: 3889 Exp!

AC Earned: 1,263!

Level Up!

System Notice: New York City threat level has decreased!

New York City: 19

System Notice: The Statue King has been defeated!

Beast Skill Available: Petrification

Petrification (Rank 1): Sends out a condensed cloud of dust that petrifies anything it comes into contact with.

Cost: 50 Mana (5 Per Second)

Cooldown: Instant

There was no time to deal with the notifications as a figure floated down from the sky.

Angelic was the only word to describe them, as they bore two shocking white wings that helped them glide towards the ground.

The figure was garbed head to toe in resplendent golden armor, plate mail not dissimilar to Finn’s Abyssal Armor, but the complete opposite. Where Finn’s was shadows, theirs was light. What little sun was overhead in the overcast sky sought them out and bathed them in sunshine. A full helm obscured their features, but they radiated grace and power.

Even without the completely obvious imagery, I knew who this was, knew it as soon as I gazed upon them.

I smiled as they settled to the ground.

“The Archangel of the White.”

Chapter 29- The Archangel of the White

Ah, hell. This is just what I need today.

Though I’d known I was being watched, the Statue King had nearly forced me to my limit. And I hadn’t considered my mortal freaking enemy would show up out of the blue.

Though I’d kept my Demon Form back, I was still woefully unprepared to deal with them while they looked to be in top fighting form. Their wings glowed with a soft radiance while the spear they wielded pulsed with sunfire.

“You know, kill stealing is a cardinal sin, right?”

The Archangel tilted their helm. Ice-blue eyes flared as they attacked without hesitation. It was only thanks to my increased Agility that I sidestepped in time. Their spear struck where my heart had been only moments before.

“Woah, hey, let’s talk─“

My words were cut short by a roundhouse kick that sent me careening into the side of a nearby Lexus, leaving a Killian-sized dent in the side. Pain bubbled from my side, but it was manageable.

I stood, only to throw myself back to the ground as they attacked again, not giving me a moment to catch my breath.

Their spear struck just behind my head, but I wasn’t safe yet. A spark of sunlight rippled down the length and exploded in a white-hot inferno that sent me flying. I landed with a snap as something in my chest broke, probably a rib.

My back rose and fell and a sharp fire made it hurt to breathe, but I had to get up.

Holy hell, they’re wiping the floor with me. Alright, it’s my turn to go on the offensive!

I aimed for the spear and cast Displacement. A hazy ball of nothing coalesced in front of them and ate half of their spear before fading and dropping at my feet.

I’d broken their spear into two completely unusable pieces. They’d let go just in time, but I was hoping to take their hands along with the damn spear.

“Alright, I’ve broken your weapon,” I said, holding my sword aloft. “Now, can we talk?”

They just chuckled and brought her hands together as if in prayer, and a white light spilled out from between their fingers. When they brought them back, a glowing white sword appeared out of thin air.

“Yeah, that figures.”

“Hey, Killian. You need backup?” Finn shouted from behind me.

Both he and Adeline tensed, preparing to engage. Salvatore stood behind them, pistols raised.

I held up my hand to stop them. “Stay out of this!” I turned to the Archangel. “This is just between you and me. Leave my friends out of this.”

They cocked their head to the side, quizzical. “Consideration from the Demon Lord. Now I’ve seen everything,” they said, their voice a deep baritone underneath the helm they wore.

“How do you know I’m the Demon Lord?”

“Instinct.” They tilted their head, looking past me to my companions. “But to answer your question. Fine. As long as they don’t interfere, I’ll leave them be.”

“Would you also be willing to, you know, leave? Maybe come back later? I’m kind of tired from fighting the glorified gothic architecture over there.”

They laughed, and it was a good laugh, heavy enough that it should have been fattening. “I wouldn’t push your luck.”

“Seriously, Ray? I did you a favor by getting rid of the dragon.”

They paused, chuckling. “Ray?”

“Oh, c’mon. It’s kind of obvious,” I said. “Pretty boy with white armor and a golden sword? Seems kind of on the nose to me.”

They snorted. “Regardless. You’re not getting away.”

“Worth a shot,” I said and shifted into Demon Form.

No use saving this, not when I’m facing my archenemy.

The Archangel’s eyes widened when I transformed, removing any doubt that I was the actual Demon Lord.

My claws elongated on their own, staining my hands black as some semblance of Demon Claw returned to me at that moment. That wasn’t the only change. My vision shifted and became distorted for a split second before returning to normal, but I noticed what I’d been overlooking before.

Demonic Gaze showed me the flow of magic that surrounded the Archangel. It was a writhing purple and blue fire that rose off their skin in waves.

It looks like they have more magic than I do. How the hell am I going to beat them?

I didn’t think about it anymore and leapt into action, trying to use my speed to my advantage. They were fast, but I could match them for speed in this form.

My sword blurred toward them in a wicked arc that whistled as it parted the air around it.

The Archangel stepped back, bringing their blade up to block mine. Obsidian and gold clashed in a fury, but they easily held me back.

“Your form isn’t half bad,” they said.

“Thanks. It’s store bought.”

Before I could react, the Archangel flourished their blade, forcing mine to the side as they scored a thin gash across my chest. It severed the strap holding my rifle in place, and the gun clattered to the ground as I staggered back from the cut.

Ailment: Minor Bleeding

-10 HP per Minute

The Archangel levied their blade at me, a drop of my blood staining the edge. “Too bad you didn’t pick up a higher skill level.”

Damn.

I gritted my teeth and approached them slowly this time. Even if I knew how to wield the blade and the forms imprinted in my muscle memory, there was still a slight hesitation in my movements.

If I survive this, I’m really going to have to train a bit.

I flicked my sword up, but it was a feint, and I quickly changed directions. The tip passed harmlessly by their throat.

The Archangel leaned back and then lunged.

I had to throw everything in a hasty parry to stop them from opening my intestines.

We clashed several more times. Each time was a narrow miss, as they easily defended against my attacks. Though my intermediate training kept me from dying as their sword tried to rob me of my life.

A single thrust later, I overextended myself and found my blade on the ground and me with a bleeding wrist.

The Archangel kicked my sword aside and came for my heart once more.

I brought my claws up and batted aside their blade. My flesh sizzled and boiled as their steel touched me, but I bit back the pain and threw myself at them.

My claws raked across their chest but stopped cold when I met their golden armor.

I backed away just as they counterattacked with their sword. They were fast, and I just managed to duck as they tried to take my head off.

The rusted hubcap of a Honda lay in the street, and on reflex, I grabbed it and tossed it at them when I rose from my crouch.

Their sword neatly sliced it in half. But their eyes focused on it and gave me an opening to attack.

I kicked out and caught them just below their kneecap. It buckled in, and they fell to the ground with a cry of pain. I pressed my advantage and stomped on their sword hand. I snapped it at the wrist and kicked the sword from their grip.

It skidded across the concrete far away from us and hit the busted tire of a minivan and disappeared under it.

I knelt and ripped the helm from their head.

A girl’s face appeared.

She was so radiantly beautiful that it hurt to look at. Long snow-white hair that spilled out across the asphalt and golden tanned skin like she spent hours bathing under the sun every day. Her ice-blue eyes stared up at me with anger as her full lips curled into a grimace.

“You’re not Ray?”

“Never said I was.” Despite the harsh tone, she had a lovely voice. Her voice was soft and scintillating.

“My mistake.” My claws went to her throat. “Look, my name’s Killian. Now that you aren’t pointing sharp objects at me, can we stop for a second and talk?”

She spat and wrapped her legs around mine, knocking me to the ground. The Archangel straddled atop me and withdrew a silver dagger from behind her. She brought it down, and my claws intercepted it, stopping it cold.

“Oh, lovely, even more pointy objects. Where do you even carry these things?”

The girl didn’t listen. Instead, she kept forcing the knife towards my chest. Her skill with a sword was unrivaled, but I was betting she didn’t have the same proficiency with every one of her weapons. It would have cost an astronomical amount of coins.

Her weakness allowed me to use my strength to grab the dagger in her hand and twist, shattering the thin metal. Slivers of steel rained down around me, and I closed my eyes as flecks of metal brushed my cheeks.

With her dagger broken, she hastily glanced around for her sword, but found it out of reach.

I smiled. “Lose something?”

“Not for long.”

Her sword flew from under the parked minivan and into her outstretched hands. She grinned triumphantly as she held her blade in her off-hand.

I bucked her off just as she plunged her sword down. It nicked my side and split through my Kevlar vest to leave a thin line across my ribs. I slammed my fist into the side of her face as she tried to withdraw her weapon, now lodged firmly in the concrete.

My punch connected hard and with more strength than I thought as she went flying across the pavement before hitting a concrete divider.

Despite the savage hit, she shrugged it off like it was nothing and stood. Her face scrunched in anger, and she took it up a notch.

Her power increased and was palpable from fifteen feet away as the magic around her swirled like a miniature storm. Soft motes of light cascaded from her outstretched wings, and a golden halo appeared around her head.

She held her hand out, forming a ball of light in her palm. It pulsed rhythmically before elongating into a thin rod and solidifying. Her spear reformed in her hands, pristine like I hadn’t just broken it into pieces.

“Oh, come on! That’s just not fair!”

She just smirked and stalked toward me, twirling her spear.

I stood off the pavement and tried once more to reason with her.

“Are you not even going to try and have a conversation with me?”

“Why should I?” she asked.

“Because I’m offering a ceasefire and to talk calmly while you’re the one rocking a murder boner right now. That doesn’t really seem very angelic, if you ask me.”

She tensed at my words before hesitating, realizing the truth of them. She lowered her spear half an inch and spoke. “Alright, talk…Killian.”

“We’re on the same side…more or less─“

“You want to destroy the world! How are we the same?”

“Just because I have to doesn’t mean I want to. You think I woke up one day asking to be handed the mantle? You think I wanted this?”

She lowered her spear and leaned against it. Her eyebrow raised as she stared at me with obvious suspicion. “Then why?”

“Callisto took my family, my friends, stole them away, and then offered me a wish if I did what he asked. I get my family back, and I can use his wish to put it all back, to fix everything. But not until I complete my job.

“How about you? I’m sure Callisto offered you something as well. What do you get if you win?”

“The complete restoration of the world, a full reset, back to before all this happened.”

“See,” I said, offering her my hand. “I told you we’re on the same side here. Let’s work together to fix all of this.”

I smiled at her, willing beyond anything for her to take my hand and agree to work together.

But fate isn’t that simple.

Her kind nature faded away into a stern set to her eyes. “Even if I believe you, which I do. I have a skill that lets me discern truth, so I know you weren’t lying. We are on opposite sides. Even if we have the same end goal, I can’t let you end the world, not when I swore to save it. I’m sorry, Killian.”

I nodded. “Damn. Well, I had to try at least.”

The Archangel nodded and rushed me with her spear. I stepped to the side as it slammed into the concrete next to my boot. The force was strong enough that a few small chips of the asphalt shot out and sliced through my pants, drawing a thin line of blood across my calf.

I shuffled back as the anti-tearing on my pants closed the small hole her attack had made. She was fast, but so was I. I brought both arms down and unleashed Rend. The air rippled and distorted as my long black claws bubbled and hissed, sending out the familiar blades of destruction.

Rend lanced across her chest and seared deep lines through her plate mail. Though none of them went through, I’d dealt some serious damage to her armor.

I’ll get through with my next attack.

She looked down and back up, her eyes widening. Her spear lunged toward my chest, and I backed away, but it was a feint, and she whipped the back of her spear across my jaw.

My head went sideways, and blood filled my mouth as a couple of teeth knocked loose. I spat the thick gob of blood onto the concrete and prepared for her second attack.

It came quickly. She spun her spear and brought it in an arc overhead. It split the air and whistled as it came for my life. It landed beside me and glowed. I knew what was coming and prepared for it.

The shock wave of light exploded and lifted me into the air.

As it hit me, I threw two more Rends at the Archangel. The force of the blow sent me flying back, but I twisted in midair and shot my arm out as I flew past a car. I hooked my claws into the hood to slow my momentum and landed on my feet on the other side of it.

My hands shook, and I dropped the slivers of the hood I’d torn from the car. They clattered to the street as I leapt over the car.

As I approached the Archangel, I noted that my second volley of Rend had done its job perfectly. She now bled from numerous lacerations across her chest, staining her tattered golden armor crimson.

She touched her hand to her slight wounds and wiped the streaks of blood away. She shook her hand to disperse the droplets. They landed haphazardly on the concrete next to her feet.

The motion drew my gaze, and an idea popped into my head.

I grinned and cast Displacement just beside her legs.

It sheared the road under her feet and caused her to topple off balance. She hit the ground hard, and I sped toward her to press my advantage.

I slugged her across the face as she stood and sent her back to the ground.

“Alright.” She wiped the back of her mouth as fury rose in her cheeks. “It’s time to get serious.”

She moved faster than I could blink. She was on me in seconds, smashing a fist into my gut and sending me to the blacktop.

My mouth filled with blood, and I vomited all over the street as I sank to my knees. My insides were pulped from the force of the blow, and my muscles were unresponsive.

Ailment: Critically Wounded

-75 HP per Minute

Damn, just how hard did she hit me?

With my insides leaking to my outsides, it made standing a challenge, but my Demon Form had kept me from dying outright.

I surprised her by standing. From the look on her face, she expected me to be down for the count. It hurt like hell, but I managed to force myself upright.

“Stronger than I gave you credit for, Killian.”

“Too stubborn, you mean. I’m like a cockroach that way. I keep getting back up, and I really piss off whoever’s house I’m in.” I laughed, though it hurt. Blood trickled from my lips. “Though if you could do me a huge favor and not hit me like that again, I’d really appreciate it.”

The chilled winter air swept past my cheek and cooled my sweat-drenched face. I was so exhausted. My Demon Form kept me from understanding how much pain I was really in, but I knew I shouldn’t be standing, let alone be gearing up for round two.

“I wouldn’t count on any favors from me.” She looked down at me, her eyes softening. “Though maybe I can make one exception. You can stop, you know. You don’t have to fight. I can make your death painless. I promise.”

I laughed through bloody teeth. “Yeah, but then you’d have to deal with Death herself, and even if she looks cute, she’s fucking scary,” I said and backed up from her. “I appreciate the offer and all, but I can’t give up. I have too much riding on this. Giving up is not an option for me. Not until the very end.”

“Very well, but don’t say I didn’t give you a chance.”

She was just as fast, but this time, I didn’t rely on my senses alone. I used Demonic Gaze to keep track of her residual magic. I knew where she would be, but I still wasn’t fast enough to stop her.

She came at me again, and I raised my hands to intercept her. But before I could, the Archangel pinned my arms and grabbed the collar of my shirt.

“Too bad you don’t have wings,” she said and flung me into the air.

I flew high into the air; the wind tore at my face, and I was floating before I knew it. For half a second, I was suspended in the air before I fell back to earth.

The Archangel wasn’t done yet. She crouched and pushed off into the air above me. She hovered in the air, her too white wings keeping her aloft. She held her hands in front of her chest. A small ball of light grew between her palms, and with each passing millisecond, my death inched closer.

Gravity had taken away my ability to do anything. When the ball of light grew larger than her entire body, she released it.

The Archangel flung it at me like a wave of pure sunlight. Demon Form wouldn’t help me here, so I used the one spell I could that would give me even a marginal chance of surviving.

I cast Displacement twice with both hands, but targeted the areas directly in front of me. As the heatwave descended, it slammed into the tear in reality and dispersed around it. The flames were intense, and my arms began to blister and peel, but most of the force and heat fell around me to the nearby buildings and street. Obliterating them.

The impact of the spell she’d cast created a massive crater in the middle of the street, and I crashed into it at terminal velocity.

A world of utter agony shattered everything I’d come to know as pain. My bones snapped and organs ruptured as I crashed to the ground. My skin burst open, and blood poured in a river to pool beneath me.

Ailment: Fatally Wounded

-100 HP per Minute

I was dying. I didn’t need the Mantle to tell me that.

When I came back to myself, I hastily pulled a health potion from my storage ring and downed it. Immediately, the ailments went away, but all it did was save me from dying then and there. The low-tier health potion wasn’t strong enough to bring me back to full health.

My health was at less than a hundred points, and the fact that I was alive at all was a miracle.

Health: 87/935

The Archangel landed on the ground only a few dozen feet from me and began walking toward me.

Well, this is it. My strength had fled me, and I didn’t even have enough magic to cast another Displacement. No time to pull another potion. Guess I’ll meet her halfway, then.

I stood, ready to face my death on my feet if I could.

I may have been a dead man walking, but I wasn’t giving up, not yet. I pulled my pistol from its holster, and using the last of what little strength I had left, I raised it at the Archangel.

She didn’t so much as flinch at the gun in her face. I fired, squeezing the trigger for everything I had.

The bullets either went wide or pinged harmlessly off her armor. My hand shook so much that I couldn’t aim, much less hit a precise target.

One last bullet, and then I clicked empty.

Well, there goes that. I’m spent. I can’t fight anymore.

I glanced back at Adeline and the others who were out of the crater, watching the fight. They’d stayed out of the fight so far. I could call them to me, have them fight, but even with their help, I didn’t know if we could beat her. And if they interfered, she’d kill them too.

No, don’t get them involved. Do this yourself.

There was only one option left. One that I had been unwilling to use until now.

My vicious pieces.

Callisto had told me they were power-ups, and to use them when I really needed them.

Well, I’d say getting my ass handed to me by my archenemy certainly qualifies.

I willed it into my hand. The glittering black chess piece twinkled in my palm. But as I closed my fingers around it, there was a flap of wings and a whistle before something struck me in the chest.

I glanced down to find the Archangel’s golden spear sticking out just above my stomach.

Oh, so that’s what hit me.

I touched the spear, and my hands came up crimson.

My Mantle filled with the same notification as before, telling me I’d been fatally wounded. But I couldn’t pay attention to them. My body didn’t work properly anymore.

I succumbed to my wounds, and my pistol slipped from my bloody fingers. It clanged against the ruined concrete as I fell to my knees and stared at the sky.

A cloudy day, the sun barely peeking out as snow drifted all around me.

It was, all things considered, quite a beautiful day to die.

Regret burned in my throat. I didn’t regret my death. No. That didn’t matter. My only regret was that I couldn’t save my family. That they would die along with me.

Maybe if she wins, they’ll come back. If I’m dead, the game is over, right?

I didn’t want to be a part of this in the first place. But I didn’t have a choice…and neither did she.

The White Angel floated towards me, dust scattering in her wake as she raised her sword to take my life.

I didn’t want to die, but I had to.

My death would mean an end to things, an end to this pointless conflict that we’d been thrust into against our will. I’d been forced into a role I had no desire to play. All to bow to the whims of a sick, malicious god.

I lifted my head at the Archangel of the White, who gazed down at me with overwhelming pity in her eyes as she came to rest beside me. She, too, knew that I had to die, but she wasn’t relishing in the act. It was a necessity and one she took upon herself with regret.

“I’m sorry it had to come to this.” Her pale hand gripped mine for a moment, and a sense of peace swept through me.

“Damn. Looks like I lost.” I coughed up blood. “And I really hate losing.”

She nodded. “One of us had to. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” I muttered through a mouthful of rust. “Do it. Save them.”

“Your approval doesn’t make this any easier,” she said.

“Might make it easier on your soul later, though.”

She chuckled, but it was grim, filled with the weight of too many sins.

Something I knew all too well.

“I don’t know if my soul is pure enough after this,” she said, gesturing around us at the ruins of the buildings we’d destroyed in our fight—the end of it which culminated in the massive crater in the middle of the street.

A burst pipe gushed water that was rapidly rushing to fill the void in the cement. It flowed into the depression where I currently lay and began to soak into my clothes. Despite the cold, it was nice on my sweat-drenched skin.

I was tired. Our battle exhausted me to the point that even death seemed appealing, and the water made me long for the days I’d spent in the summer with my family. Even if it hadn’t been that long ago, it seemed like it had been forever since those times.

A lifetime.

My adrenaline faded, allowing the plethora of wounds she’d dealt me to finally register. And I gritted my teeth in pain as I tried to sit up and failed. I coughed up too much blood and laid back down.

The spear had likely nicked my spinal cord.

I wasn’t getting back up.

Not this time.

“Killian!” Adeline shouted.

Her head appeared in my vision, and I looked back at the Archangel. “Don’t hurt them. Promise me!”

“Of course,” she replied.

“Then what are you waiting for? Finish this. End this death game.”

She nodded her head and steeled herself. Her snow-white hair was fluttering in the wind caused by her wings as she hovered just off the ground. Her golden sword raised to pierce my heart; sunlight rippled in bursts down the blade.

I smiled at the sight and accepted my death.

“I’m sorry, Killian. Truly, I am.”

“It’s okay,” I said. “Had to be this way.”

She stabbed downward into my chest.

As I lost all feeling in my body, I tried to fight for one more instant. I wanted to see their faces as I died. Though it was the hardest thing I had to do, I fought through the pain and tilted my head until I could see them.

Adeline’s blue hair blew in the wind, and she and Finn crouched next to me. Salvatore stood behind them, rage on his face as he stared down at the Archangel.

I smiled at them.

“See you guys on the other side,” I said.

I couldn’t fight it anymore and let the yawning abyss of death swallow me whole.

Chapter 30- The Demon Lord of the Black

Dying was excruciating, but death was rather peaceful. I found myself floating in a vast expanse of nothingness. Innumerable stars floated just out of reach, and a dual spire galaxy swirled off in the distance.

There was a cool breeze that brought a soft whisper to my ears.

“Hello, darling.”

“Hello, Death.”

Invisible arms wrapped around my chest and held me close. “So, this is the Land of the Dead?” I asked.

“Just a small part of it. I can take you to my home if you want, it’s not far. But there is something we have to discuss first.”

“And that would be?”

“I would like to offer you a choice. To stay here with me or to go back to Earth.”

I paused. “I thought I was dead?”

Death held me even tighter. “You are close enough that I could pull you from your body, but you have not yet crossed over.”

I had no body, but I wanted nothing more than to hold her as she held me. “Why give me the choice? From the sigil you gave me, it’s pretty clear that you’ve wanted me here since the very beginning. Why let me go back?”

“Because I love you. I can’t be selfish with you, much as I would like to be. And you’ll always return to me, eventually. So, I can be patient for a few decades.”

Death’s embrace was comforting. It was like being by the fire on a cold winter’s night. She was so warm and soft that I wanted nothing more than to stay with her in this place. I was tired of fighting, tired of killing.

Some part of me was grateful to the Archangel for taking the burden from my shoulders and granting me an escape from my responsibilities.

I didn’t want to go back.

“This is a very peaceful place.”

“I know. It’s my favorite place in the universe.” Death giggled. “But I may be biased.”

I sighed deeply and leaned back against her. She pulled me tighter and ran her fingers through my hair.

“Your mind is troubled. Talk to me, like we used to. Let me help,” she said, her voice warm next to my ear.

I’d missed her voice. We hadn’t spoken in days, and only now did I realize how much I enjoyed simply being near her.

“I’m tired, Death. It’s only been a few weeks since all of this started, and I’m already at my limit. I’ve killed so many people and waded so far away from my morality that the shore is miles back. I’m not cut out for this. I don’t know if I have the strength to see it through.

“Maybe letting the Archangel win is for the best.”

“Maybe it is,” Death said. “She would certainly kill fewer people and do less harm in the long run. You could simply let things be as they are now. Stay here and let her win. Callisto will have to choose another Demon Lord at this stage, but that wouldn’t be your concern anymore. You and I could simply be together. Here.”

I wanted that. I wanted it more than I’d ever wanted anything else in my life. I wanted to push my burdens off on someone else and just give in, stay here with Death.

“I want that,” I said.

She nodded. Her phantom chin dug into my collarbone. “I can give it to you. I can give you peace and let you rest until the end of eternity. All it will cost is your family's lives.”

Her words sent a lightning bolt through me, and my heart pounded fast in my chest. I tried to swallow, but my mouth was sand.

“Magnus, the Incarnation of Time, plucked them from the world. Not even I can reach them,” Death said. “If you want to give up, you most certainly can, but you’ll be leaving them to their fates, left to drift outside the flow of time.” Death brushed her lips over the nape of my neck. “But the man I fell in love with doesn’t simply roll over and give up. Even when facing superior opponents. He stands up, says something witty, and doesn’t back down. Ever.”

I smiled.

She was right, and I was a fool.

I laughed and pressed my cheek against hers.

“I can’t give up. Even if I have to bring the world to its knees. I can’t leave my family as they are, and I can’t leave my job up to someone else just because I don’t want to do it. It has to be me.

“Thank you, Death. I needed to hear that.”

“It’s what I’m here for. Always.”

I nodded. “Alright. Send me back. I have work to finish.”

Her lips brushed against my cheek before she faded away. “Give her hell.”

“You can count on it,” I said as my vision went black.

When I woke up, I opened my eyes to sadness. Finn and Adeline were kneeling over me, glaring hatred at the Archangel with tears in their eyes.

She, however, held apology in hers.

“Truly, I’m sorry for your loss, but there was no other choice. One of us had to lose,” she said.

The two of them looked ready to attack her out of grief alone, but I couldn’t let that happen, so it was time to stop laying down on the job.

I just had to do one thing first.

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 32/650 (715)

Mana: 50/700

Stamina: 300/650

Level: 22

Exp: 3583/3823

Skill Points Available: 3

45 Stat Points Available!

The vicious piece was still in my hand, and I had to use it. I couldn’t beat her at my current level, and I needed to get stronger.

I crushed the pawn in hand, and a new screen appeared.

Vicious Piece: First Pawn

Use: Y/N

Yes.

First Pawn Used!

25% of Current Exp!

Current Exp: 34281

25%: 8570 Exp!

Experience Boost (+27.5%): 2357 Exp!

Total Gain: 10927 Exp!

Level Up!

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 32/650 (715)

Mana: 50/700

Stamina: 300/650

Level: 25

Exp: 2369/4465

New Skills Available!

Skill Points Available: 4

75 Stat Points Available!

Soul of the Demon Lord

Level 25 Unlocked!

Demon Form (Second Form)

Demon Form (Second Form): The true form of the Demon Lord. Boosts Strength, Constitution, Endurance, Perception, Agility, and Wisdom by 30 for the duration. Boosts all magical damage by 30% for the duration. (Cannot naturally regenerate Health, Mana, or Stamina in this form)

Cost: 300 Mana

Duration: Until Canceled

Cooldown: Instant

Current Skills

Demon Form (First Form)

Demon Form (Second Form)

Displacement (Rank 1)

Demonic Gaze (Passive)

Rend (Rank 1)

Skills List

Grasp of the Abyss (Rank 1)

Barrier (Rank 1)

Tracker (Rank 1)

Coagulation (Rank 1)

Promotion

Shadow Mist (Rank 1)

Petrification (Rank 1)

New Skills

Void Bullet (Rank 1): Fire miniature black holes at a target. Grows when in contact with organic matter. Will continue to deal damage over time until it dissipates.

Damage: 75 (Abyssal)

Cost: 50 Mana

Cooldown: Instant

Siphon: Drain a target’s mana and adds it to your own. (Only works on targets with mana)

Drain: 200 (Scales with Wisdom)

Cost: 150 Stamina

Cooldown: 5 Minutes

Blight (Passive) (Rank 1): Coats the Demon Lord’s claws in concentrated Abyss. Deals damage over time when it encounters the flesh or blood of a target.

Damage: 5 per second (Abyssal)

I wanted all of them, and with my saved-up skill points, I could afford it.

With that, I bought Void Bullet, Siphon, and Blight, leaving me with one skill point.

But now wasn’t the time to be frugal. Not when I was facing the Archangel.

With a thought, I waved away the skills screen. I’d have plenty of opportunity to see the particulars of each skill when I wasn’t running on borrowed time.

I still had to add my stat points, and I had to make it quick.

So many!

I’d leveled up quite a few times, though I wasn’t going to complain, not after coming so close to death.

I needed more power, more health, more everything.

And with my stockpile, I could do whatever I wanted.

I had precious seconds, so I hastily added fifteen to Constitution, Endurance, and Wisdom. Those were the three stats that I absolutely needed to keep me alive. Though coming so close to death instantly made me want to throw every single point into them just to make sure I never came that close again, I couldn’t do that or I’d risk throwing all of my stats out of balance.

So I held off, and only put as much as I thought I needed to keep pace with the Archangel.

With the remaining points, I put ten into Strength, and Agility, to keep me able to deal damage and hopefully come close to matching her in speed. The remaining ten went to Perception and Charisma, five each so they could keep coming up.

I increased every single one of my stats because I would need all of them if I had any hope of defeating the Archangel.

Stat Page

Strength: 60

Constitution: 60

Perception: 35

Endurance: 60

Agility: 55

Wisdom: 65

Charisma: 50

The pain of accepting my new stats was brief, and barely a drop in the bucket compared to getting impaled and stabbed. But all my injuries healed in an instant, and I had full health, stamina, and mana as I climbed to my feet.

I turned to the Archangel. “It’s unfortunate, but she’s right, much as we’re on the same side, we’re two opposing elements, and we can’t mix.”

The Archangel stared at me with open shock across her face. “How are you alive? I killed you.”

“One of the perks of dating Death,” I said with a laugh before turning to my friends. “Finn, take Ade and get out of here. Salvatore, make sure they’re safe.”

He nodded and drew his guns, but Finn just stared at me.

“Why?” he asked, clutching Adeline’s hand.

“Because things are about to get messy, and I don’t want you three involved,” I said, eyeing the Archangel. “Our deal still stands. You won’t hurt them?”

The Archangel scowled at my words and backed away, going for her spear. “You still wish to fight? Was one brush with death not enough for you?”

“Guess I’m a thrill-seeker.” I shrugged. “So, our deal?”

She sighed and nodded. “I will leave them be. You have my word on it.”

“Thank you.” I turned back to Finn. “You heard her. Go. Get out of here!”

Adeline smiled. “Still trying to do everything yourself.” She clutched at Finn and pulled him away from the crater. “We’ll leave, but if you die on me, I’ll find you in the afterlife and kick your ass!”

As they left, an icy chill rolled through the broken street, and the charcoal skies overhead tempted a snowstorm, but I held my ground and faced my enemy.

“Before we begin, tell me your name.”

She smiled at the request. Just a hint of an upturned lip was all I got. “I guess you wouldn’t recognize me like this, would you, Killian?”

“We’ve met?” I asked, but even as I spoke, I recognized her voice. It was slightly different, so I wasn’t surprised I didn’t hear it before now, but it was still hers. “Julia. From the stadium.”

“Correct,” she said, inclining her head.

I gritted my teeth and clenched my fist tight. “Did you know? Before this, did you know I was the Demon Lord?”

Julia shook her head. “No. But I had my suspicions, at least. A party of all unique classes doesn’t just show up out of the blue. And when you lied about your class, I knew you were hiding something.” She shook her head as her eyes fell. “Though you seemed so nice. Genuine.”

I snorted, letting out a cold chuckle. “Sending us to take out the Statue King on our first mission. Clever. Either it kills us or wears us down enough that you could swoop in and finish the job.”

“I figured it wouldn’t kill you. You’d have been a poor Demon Lord to have been taken out by such a low-leveled king.” She glanced away. “Still, you’re proving far more tenacious than I gave you credit for.”

“Tenacious.” I snorted. “I’ve been called worse.” As I spoke, I sighed as I had to face reality. “I wish things didn’t have to be this way, Julia. But I have a job to do, and I won’t let you stand in my way.”

“As do I, Killian.”

There would be no more polite conversation between us, much as we might wish otherwise. We were naturally opposing forces, and there could be no peace between us.

A damn shame, but I refuse to back down.

Julia noticed the resolve in my eyes and launched herself at me, her strength cracking the concrete under her as she pushed off, aiming for my heart. She was fast, but not quicker than a thought.

Second Form.

I wasn’t prepared for the pain. My whole body radiated with a constant ache that swiftly turned into a raging inferno as my bones heated up. Time seemed to halt, and Julia’s movements seemed painfully slow to my eyes as my body underwent a metamorphosis.

As the pain faded, I didn’t have time to wonder at the state of myself. Julia’s holy spear was an inch from my chest when I acted.

I didn’t mean to hurt her. All I meant to do was bat the spear aside, but when the back of my hand connected with the spear, it shattered and sent Julia flying.

Time returned to normal, and Julia crashed into the gray brick wall of a bank, still holding the pieces of her shattered weapon. She landed with a heavy crack, and blood dribbled out of her mouth. She shrugged it off and stood, only to freeze solid with a look of terror on her face.

“Killian, is that you?”

“As far as I’m aware,” I replied.

Oh great, I bet I look like a monster now.

Julia didn’t move, so I looked around for a reflective surface and settled on the side-view mirror of a Dodge truck that was dangling precariously close to the crater we’d made in the road. With a snap, I tore the mirror free and looked at myself.

The face of a demon stared back.

I’d made a drastic change. My face had elongated. It was thinner and more angular now, with sharp cheekbones and a slightly pointed chin. The same with my ears. They’d stretched and ended in a tapered point.

Though it was still my face underneath it all, the rest of my features were decidedly not my own. My black, shaggy hair that always fell in my face was gone, replaced by fine, snow-white hair that fell past my shoulders, and my pale blue eyes were erased. I had no pupils at all. My eyes were a stark white, without any hint of color in them at all. The only color lay outside my eyes. Thick black veins branched out around my eyes before fading back under my skin near my cheeks.

I didn’t recognize the man standing before me. It was the face of a monster. But I couldn’t stop and reflect on these changes, not in the middle of a fight.

I dropped the car mirror, and the glass shattered as it struck the concrete. Julia dropped the broken pieces of her weapon and lost her look of fear, her battle instincts returned, and she clapped her hands together, preparing to summon another weapon.

I didn’t let her.

Faster than she could react, I moved, slamming into her with my shoulder and sending her crashing to the ground.

Julia absorbed the charge and rolled back before landing in a crouch. “You’re a hell of a lot faster now, stronger too.”

“Looks like it. Let’s see if it’s enough,” I said and kicked her.

Julia couldn’t dodge it, so she tried to absorb it, but it was too much, and the kick knocked her back to the café behind her, sending her sprawling over the patio furniture.

It spoke to her own strength that she could hold up against my new power. I had absolutely no idea how strong I’d become. But even with my new strength, she wasn’t going down easy.

I’d made a mistake and given her distance and put obstacles in between myself and her, so she had time to form a new weapon, and she crafted a golden sword and unfurled her angelic wings.

I can’t let her take to the skies.

I held out my hand and cast Void Bullet.

A single dark sphere the size of a marble appeared in my hand and launched as if fired out of a cannon toward Julia.

It struck her in the shoulder and exploded in a shower of dark mist. Flecks of her golden armor cascaded from the impact and were eaten as the obsidian wisps swirled and coalesced into a miniature black hole next to her.

Before she could react, it ripped a section from her wings, tearing out her white feathers and devouring them.

Julia jumped away, bright red blood dripping down her once pristine feathers. She darted to the left, moving instinctively away from the Void Bullet. I didn’t blame her after seeing the results, but it made her easy to predict.

As she moved, I angled my hand to where she was going to be and fired off another bullet.

This one struck her hip and sheared off a thick groove from her plate mail. As the Void Bullet struck and dispersed, more of her armor dissolved, and Julia panicked as she was caught between growing black holes.

I used her panic to my advantage and struck. I rushed in and lashed out with Rend.

They struck her weakened chestplate and cut deep, drawing thick spurts of blood. Ruby-red arced from Julia as the impact of Rend flung her back, tendrils of black eating away at her wounds as Blight took hold.

She hit the side of a handrail, and the metal buckled as she slammed into it, crumpling around her as it was ripped from the concrete. Sparks jumped from the metal as it skidded along the concrete and stopped when Julia crashed into the side of a building.

The first round went to her, but I had her on the ropes, and I needed to press my advantage. But I needed to temper my sudden surge of power.

I had to be cautious.

Julia has reached at least level twenty-five and unlocked her second form, so she should be just as dangerous as I am. And I haven’t seen her entire arsenal of tricks yet. I shouldn’t rush in.

I approached her slowly, another Rend on the tips of my fingers, along with a Void Bullet in my off-hand.

Julia jumped up quickly, a golden aura billowing off her skin. She held her hand out, and a brilliant light filled my vision before condensing into a single point in the center of her palm.

Oh shit!

I launched Void Bullet as she fired off her spell.

The ever-consuming abyss met her golden light and collided.

For a second, they hung suspended in the air, both vying for dominance, and then Void Bullet dispersed, and there was a blinding flash of light as a wave of pressure slammed into me.

My ears rang too loud as the roar of the ocean deafened me. I was weightless, and then I slammed into something hard, and there was a crack as I broke something.

I couldn’t see, couldn’t hear for a long moment as I worked out how to stand, and I rubbed at my eyes and blinked to clear them.

The world came back to me slowly, and I gaped when I could see again.

We’d made another huge crater.

The bank and restaurant entrances were nothing but a blasted wasteland of obliterated and blackened concrete and metal. A glassy sheen covered the blast zone, and I winced as it hurt to breathe.

What the hell did we just do? Did Julia do that, or was it something else?

I didn’t see her, but I knew that if the blast hadn’t killed me, it wouldn’t have killed her either. I walked forward, trying to keep my eyes peeled for a sneak attack, but there was nothing.

A burst of light from above me drew my gaze, and I found Julia on the second floor of the bank. She stood in front of a blasted-out window. Blood ran from numerous cuts on her body, and the feathers on her wings were singed.

“What the hell was that?” she asked.

“So that wasn’t you?”

She shook her head.

Damn. That leaves only one option.

I rubbed the back of my head as I stared up at her. “Guess we shouldn’t try to counter each other’s magic like that again.”

“Yeah.” She nodded. “That was…explosive.”

Julia floated down and stopped about thirty feet away. “I think we’re about evenly matched in speed and strength right now. But you have more offensive magic than I do.”

I smirked. “That sounds like a personal problem.”

She chuckled and drew her wings to their full length. “Too bad you still can’t fly, Killian,” Julia said and took to the skies.

She was faster during flight, and she swooped down quicker than I expected.

I tried to dodge, but she outpaced me and sliced a groove across my cheek. Her holy sword burned my flesh and caused warm blood to slither down my face.

Ailment: Minor Bleeding

-10 HP per Minute

My hand went to my cheek, and it came away as black as tar.

Black blood, but no wings? Damn it, why don’t I have wings?

And like I’d said the magic word, pain ripped open my back and split through my Kevlar and clothes with ease.

Two crimson wings tore through my skin and draped around me like a cloak. They were thin and vaguely draconic in appearance, but I knew instinctively that they would support me during flight.

Without considering how I knew, I took off and soared towards Julia.

I didn’t have time to marvel at the wind whipping past my face as we both ascended to the sky.

Julia looked back and saw me gaining on her. A look of utter disbelief flared across her face before she steeled her shock and cut her flight, folding her wings, and dropped fast on me.

I wasn’t expecting it, and she raised her sword to slice me in half.

My demonic claws came up and stopped her swing cold, the golden blade biting a few centimeters into my hand.

It hurt like hell. The blistering, purifying light of her holy weapon sizzled and blistered my skin where it touched, and it slid into my veins, burning me from the inside. The strength of my claws held under her attack, but it did nothing about the pain. I fought back a scream and twisted my wrist to clamp down on her sword. I stopped her blade and raked my other hand across her chest.

Just as her holy power wreaked havoc on me, so, too, did my demonic power infect her.

My claws sheared right through her golden armor and soft flesh. The armor mitigated the worst damage, so she only ended up with a couple of scratches, but some of my darkness bled away into her skin, and she screamed as tendrils of black writhed just under her skin. My Blight ate at her just as her power ate at me.

It didn’t spread any further than her chest, and while she was in pain, it wasn’t enough to stop her assault.

I’d snagged one of her buckles that held her chestplate, and it sagged, only holding on by a sliver of metal. With a snarl, she ripped it off and threw it away. It sailed under the wind and crashed into one of the skyscrapers next to us, shattering the corner office window and sending shards of glass raining to the street below.

As I took my eyes off her, she rushed me, folding her wings in and dropping faster than I could react, and slammed into me.

She shoved her sword toward my chest, and I just managed to stop it as she slid through what remained of my Kevlar.

I cried out as her steel pierced my flesh and began burning me, but I gripped her wrist tight enough to keep her from pushing in.

My claws dug into her flesh, puncturing through her skin to draw heavy drips of blood that were soon whisked away by the howling wind. It pounded loud in my ears, as loud as my beating heart in my throat as I fought for control against Julia.

With a thought, I cast Siphon, and the veins in my hands changed to a bright blue as a pulse spread from my fingertips and stole Julia’s mana.

She struggled against me, fighting to keep me from draining her like a juice box, but I had the greater Strength, so I snapped her wrist and held on as Siphon finished its work. When I was done, I forced her back. I pushed off her and flew away with her sword still stuck in my chest, still eating away at my flesh. I ripped it free and tossed it aside, letting it fall to the ground.

Julia followed her blade, but I tracked it and cast Displacement.

Her hands closed around the hilt as Displacement hit the blade and shattered it into pieces. They appeared at my feet above her and rained down, passing Julia once more as she snarled in rage.

She tossed her useless hilt away in anger. “That spell of yours is annoying.” She had to raise her voice to shout over the wind.

“So is your whole one-woman arsenal trick.”

She smiled wide. “Oh, I’m just getting started.”

Julia clapped her hands together again and pulled another small silver dagger from out of nowhere.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” I muttered.

Neither of us could keep this up for long, though I’d taken a good chunk of her mana, giving me an advantage. Our fight had dragged on too long already, but neither of us would back down until the other was defeated.

Julia launched herself at me with her dagger in hand. I launched a dual Rend at her. As they arced toward her, I dropped my wings and followed them, intending to end this here and now.

She couldn’t dodge in time and took the brunt of Rend across her arms and shoulders. It sliced deep furrows into her skin and traveled to her once white wings, slashing them open.

It had done a good bit of damage, but it also did exactly what I was hoping and made her cover her face.

I held my palms up and blasted her with numerous Void Bullets, using most of my pilfered mana to keep her on the defensive. Blasts of concentrated abyss struck her armor and wings, snapping up small bites of her flesh as she tried to dodge them and backed away into one of the few openings I’d left her.

Right where I wanted her.

She didn’t see me coming.

I slammed into her with as much force as gravity and my wings would allow and tackled her, sending us both flying towards the ground. We flew so fast that I barely had time to get my bearings before a giant, gray monolith loomed before us. I angled us to the right and covered my head as we crashed through a dark tinted pane of glass and into the skyscraper.

Glass shattered around us, and we hit the floor hard.

I had only half a second to glance at the room we’d landed in. It was an office, some wealthy middle managers from the extravagant décor and rich mahogany desk we’d landed next to.

Julia shifted under me, and I quickly wrapped my hand around her neck, digging my claws ever so slightly into her throat.

I stared into her azure eyes, ablaze with a slew of emotions, and squeezed harder.

“Checkmate.”

She flashed me a devilish grin, showing her perfect white teeth. “You might want to look down.”

Julia flicked her eyes to my chest, and I followed them to find her silver dagger, poised at my heart, waiting to take my life.

I can still rip her throat out before she kills me, but I can’t kill her and survive. But neither can she kill me and survive.

I matched her smile. “So, where does this leave us?”

We gazed into each other’s eyes for what seemed like a lifetime, each waiting for the other to make a move. But when neither of us did, she blinked, and time reasserted itself.

Julia sighed. “In check, I think.”

Chapter 31- Kings in Check

“So, where do we go from here?” I asked, staring down at Julia.

She paused for a long moment. Her eyes darted around, searching for a way out of this mess or leverage. But there was nothing but the two of us on a barely carpeted office floor holding each other dead to rights.

After scanning her surroundings and coming up empty, she slumped to the ground.

“I don’t know,” she said, her voice defeated. “We either both die here or…”

“Or we have a cease-fire,” I finished.

She stiffened under my hand. “I refuse!”

“Then I kill you.” I increased the pressure on her throat. “And you kill me.” Her knife dug into my flesh. “Then no one wins, and I don’t know what will happen after that. Do you really want to leave that up to chance?”

“What are you suggesting?”

My next action was a risk, but I thought I knew what kind of person Julia was, so it was at least a calculated one. I let go of her throat and backed off her, leaning against the back of the wooden desk, and let her sit up.

When she got into a kneeling position, she looked down at her dagger in her hand and back at me, conflict in her eyes.

“How about a temporary truce? Let’s sit down and actually have a conversation without trying to kill each other.”

“A truce?” She grumbled under her breath for a second before nodding. “Fine, just this once.”

“Good.” I stood and held out my hand to help her up.

She took it with some hesitation, and I pulled her to her feet. I half expected her to go for the kill when she was up, but I was right about her, and she instead stowed her dagger away.

“Alright, Killian. Let’s talk.”

I nodded and canceled the Void Bullet I’d hidden in my palm.

Glad I didn’t have to use it.

“Let’s, but not here.” I walked to the edge of the building and pointed down at a mom-and-pop bakery. “How about we sit down and get something hot to drink?”

She nodded and jumped out the window, falling to the pavement.

I followed suit. We were still several hundred feet up in the air. As I dropped, I folded my wings and fell back to earth. I didn’t know how I knew exactly how to angle my wings to achieve terminal velocity or how I knew just when to release them to avoid making Killian hamburger on the pavement below, but I did. I glided back to the ground and stopped, canceling my Demon Form as I landed.

A wall of fatigue slammed into me, and I nearly crumpled to the ground, but I kept myself standing as Julia landed next to me and canceled her Archangel Form.

I was right about Julia’s Archangel Form being the second level too, because when hers ended, away went her long silver hair and wings. She dropped back into her normal appearance, the same brown, curly hair and eyes of the girl I’d met back at the stadium. The wind picked up, and she shivered, folding her bare arms under her chest and rubbing them.

Our fight had left her with precious little clothing. My claws had shorn through her T-shirt and left ragged holes in it, showing her blue, lacy bra underneath that was only held together with prayer at this point.

She seemed a modest girl, and what I’d done to her outfit hardly left any modesty at all. I took off my ripped coat and held it out to her, which surprised her.

“Sorry about the holes in the back, but it has anti-tearing, so they should fix themselves soon.”

Julia took it, but just stared at me. “Why?”

I shrugged. “Because you’re cold. I told you, I’m not a heartless monster. I can’t just let you freeze while I stay warm.”

“Won’t you be cold, then?”

“There’s a clothing store on every corner here,” I said, thumbing behind me. “What’s a little looting during the apocalypse?”

As she pulled on the coat, she motioned towards the bakery, but I shook my head.

“You go on inside, I need to find my friends, and I’ll be right back.” I held up my hands. “I promise I’m not trying to pull anything. I just don’t want them out here while we’re chatting over tea.”

She nodded. “Don’t keep me waiting.”

I pulled out a few health and mana potions and tossed her one of each. “I don’t know about you, but you kicked the crap outta me. We should both heal up.”

“You did quite a bit of damage yourself.” She uncapped the health vial and downed it as I did the same.

The injuries and pain I’d been dealing with vanished as my health climbed back to high numbers. I wasn’t a hundred percent healed, but it was good enough to let the Mantle’s rapid regeneration handle the rest. I popped the mana potion next and switched to my second form.

Pain ripped through my back as my wings unfurled, and I took off, flying down the street until I found a clothing store. Rushing inside, I discarded my ruined Kevlar and grabbed some clothes and a new coat, a long wool overcoat that I had to cut to slip my wings through, but it fit better without the vest. When I was suitably dressed, I left the store and took off into the sky.

Now, where the hell did you guys go?

I flew down the streets in a flash, searching for them, and found them only a few minutes later. Having a bird's-eye view and fifty miles per hour speed came in handy when searching for people.

The three of them were fighting a group of Pallid Beasts, and they were kicking ass, but I still decided to help them out a bit.

Four of the ugly bastards fell back behind the others and grouped in close, so I used Displacement and turned four Pallid Beasts into two and a half Pallid Beasts.

A glob of gruesome body parts appeared in front of me and fell to the ground in a mustard-colored rain of blood. I inevitably dripped a little bit on Finn, Salvatore, and Adeline, but they were too busy killing the last of the beasts to notice.

Combat Results!

2 Killed (Pallid Beasts): 448 Exp!

Experience Boost (+30%): 134 Exp!

Total Gain: 582 Exp!

AC Earned: 300!

When the rest of the monsters were dead, they turned to look up at me with wide eyes that only widened as I glided towards them, and they took in my white hair and bleached eyes.

Adeline gasped. “Killian?”

“Too edge lord?” I asked.

Finn burst out into laughter while Adeline stared at me in shock. “A little bit, but I have to admit, you look like the fucking Demon Lord now!”

I turned to Salvatore. “Sal?”

He chuckled and stowed his pistols away. “It’s not a bad look on you, that’s for sure.”

I laughed, and that seemed to break Ade out of her spell. She came over and wrapped me in a tight hug, stammering and asking what happened between the Archangel and me.

“Ade, I’m fine, and I’ll tell you everything as we walk. But the short version is that she and I have called a temporary truce and will talk things over. I just had to find you guys first.”

“What?” Salvatore asked. “We’re going to talk to the Archangel? After she nearly killed you?”

I nodded. “You guys didn’t see the other half of the fight. Trust me. I gave just as good as I got.”

Though I didn’t like standing out in the open, I quickly filled them in on what had happened and finished the story as we started walking back to the bakery. I canceled Demon Form, though I suddenly found myself vastly under-armed.

A fresh weight settled on my hip, and I glanced down to find my sword that I’d lost back in its sheath on my hip.

Though my guns were buried under a mountain of rubble.

Oh well. They’ve been about as useful as shooting rubber bands for a while now.

It took us about twenty minutes to reach the bakery, and we rounded the corner to the street. Finn whistled.

“Holy hell, just look at this damage.” He held his arms out at the ruined street.

The street was a mess of broken buildings, craters, and destroyed cars. Some the Statue King had done, its massive rotting carcass blocking most of the road, but most of the destruction had been caused by Julia and I fighting.

I need to be careful with my new form. It’s very powerful. And with me having unlocked it as I reached level twenty-five, it stands to reason the unlocks for the soul of the Demon Lord at the higher levels are additional forms.

I shuddered, not even wanting to think about the power I’d have if I kept leveling up.

“This world has lost its mind,” I muttered to myself as we entered the bakery.

Like the coffee shop we’d taken shelter in back in Grissom, this place hadn’t been vandalized or looted during the opening days of the apocalypse. The strong scent of baked goods lingered in the place, along with the scent of fresh coffee brewing.

Julia had turned the lights on and started making coffee to pass the time. I immediately walked over to the coffee maker and poured a fresh cup.

“Oh my God, I love you,” I said.

Julia chuckled as I sat down. “I’m flattered, but it just wouldn’t work between us. It’s not you. It’s me.”

I laughed. “I was talking to the coffee anyway. It’s never tried to kill me before.” Her smile fell as quick as it came, and I frowned. “Damn, I’d have liked to have a normal conversation with you, so that’s my bad.”

She nodded. “It’s hard to ignore the elephant in the room.”

I turned back to the others standing around, staring at Julia like she was about to grow three heads. “Alright, guys, you’re freaking me out, so no telling what Julia is feeling. We have a truce. There will be no more fighting today. Sit down, have some coffee. Relax.”

I faced Julia again and smiled.

If the world wasn’t falling to pieces outside, this would be kind of nice.

Though from the look on her face, she wasn’t having the same thoughts.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that, I’m afraid. You have your truce, for a few minutes at least, but I’m still contemplating on killing you.”

“Won’t be as easy as you seem to think, now. I matched you in speed and power.”

Julia drummed her finger on the wooden laminate table, contemplating my words. She knew as I did that I was her exact match in my Demon Form, and if we fought again now one-on-one, it would likely end with both of our deaths.

“So, what’s your offer, Killian?”

“Same as before.” I shrugged. “A cease-fire. Basically, we stay the hell out of each other’s way for the time being.”

She slammed her palm on the table, gritting her teeth. “I can’t just let you run rampant; your goal is to end the world.”

I stood from the booth and walked over behind the counter. There was a rack with all kinds of wrapped pastries and desserts on it.

Maybe they’re like Twinkies and will still be good.

I snagged some donut sticks and brought them back over to the table. I slid one to Julia and unwrapped mine, taking a huge bite.

“Nothing you said is untrue, but you seem to still be under the impression that I’m just going around and slaughtering innocents. That I’m a monster.”

Julia lifted her donut stick and took a tentative bite. “And you’re not?”

“No, I’m not.”

She pulled out a bottle of water and washed down the donut. When she was done, she flicked the cap at me. “So, you’ve never killed before?”

I let out a deep breath, trying not to let those memories of Clara flare back up. Not just those, but of Reynolds, Matthias, and all the others I’d killed to get here.

After a lifetime, I spoke. “Only those who were truly monstrous.”

Julia took note of my tone and the expression that played across my face, choosing to back off the topic. “Fine, so let’s say that I agree. Then what? We just go our separate ways?”

“Yep, we both keep leveling, and we face off when we’re both at our full strength down the line. It's either that, or we can go outside and duke it out right now. But I’m not too fond of either of our chances at victory.

“So, what’s it going to be, now or later? We have to fight eventually, but it doesn’t have to be today.”

“Fine,” she said, downing the rest of her water. “There’s a good chance I’d lose if we continued our fight, so I’ll agree to hold off for now.”

“That’s more than fair,” I said, standing and offering her my hand.

She looked at it like it might bite her. Her eyes flicked from my hand to my face.

“Oh, come on! I helped you up not thirty minutes ago. It’s not like we’re mortal enemies.”

The vein in the side of her neck pulsed as her face reddened. “That’s exactly what we are!” she shouted, throwing her hands in the air.

“No. We’re simply playing for opposite teams.”

“I guess.”

“Good,” I said, proffering her my hand once more. “So, shake my damn hand.”

She did, giving me a firm grip and pumping her hand twice. “You are the strangest person I’ve ever met.” She sighed, exasperated. “Alright, Killian. Truce. For now, at least.”

I nodded.

As our meeting concluded, I walked over to the bakery door and held it open to her. She nodded her thanks.

“Now, to find my friends,” Julia said.

“Speaking of, where are your pieces?”

“They’re out hunting and leveling up. We’re strong enough to handle smaller missions by ourselves.”

An interesting thought. Might need to consider that myself.

“Well, glad our truce went well,” I said with a smile.

Julia snorted and walked out into the street. “You’re not what I was expecting in the slightest.”

“Yeah, I get that a lot.”

She just smiled at me and shifted into her Angelic Form, her radiant angelic wings spreading out as she tensed. “Well, see you around, Demon Lord Killian.”

I nodded. “Count on it, Archangel Julia.”

In a flash, she was soaring over the skyscrapers heading towards Yankee Stadium.

What a strange girl. At least she agreed to a truce…but how long do I expect that to really last? I didn’t expect treachery from her, but no way was it that simple. Something would inevitably complicate our cease-fire—nothing I can do about it right now. Let’s worry about things we can’t predict later.

Let’s deal with our more immediate problem first.

I walked back into the bakery with the others. They hadn’t moved during the conversation with Julia, but they did when I came back.

Adeline got up to pour herself a cup of coffee as I went back to mine. Salvatore slid his pistols back in their holsters, and Finn just laughed.

“You sure get into the most interesting of situations, Hermano.”

I sat back down and took a heaping gulp of the warm coffee, and ran a hand through my hair. “I’m just glad things went the way I hoped. She’s tough, easily as strong as I am. And I’m betting she hasn’t used her pawns yet, or this would have gone entirely different.”

“You noticed it too,” Salvatore said. “She would have killed you if she could have.”

“Yeah, which is why I went and got the three of you before we had our talk. Even if she’d used her pawn, she couldn’t have won against all four of us.”

Adeline came and sat across from me. She propped against the wall and laid her feet across the booth. “So why did we just let her walk? We could have taken her.”

I shook my head and took another sip of coffee. “We could’ve, yes, but it would have cost at least one of our lives, maybe more. Plus, she’s not actually a bad person. I figured if we could talk like actual human beings, she would come to see that I’m not exactly living up to my title.

“I just hope it will be enough in the future. Things are going to get harder from here on out.”

“Think so?” Finn asked.

“Yeah, when I hit level twenty-five, it seems the experience required to level up each time has gone up by a good bit. It’s going to be harder to level, so that means we are going to have to start taking more dangerous quests in order to get stronger.”

“Sounds like fun to me,” Adeline said, propping her hands behind her head. “As long as little miss angelic stays out of our way, I guess I don’t mind having a truce.”

“Yeah, but a certain someone is none too pleased with how that meeting turned out. Isn’t that right, Callisto?”

A woosh of soft air rolled in from nowhere, and Callisto appeared, sitting next to me in the booth.

Adeline jumped up, stifling a squeak. “Jesus, I’ll never get used to that.”

“I wish you would have consulted me before talking your archenemy into a truce with you, my Demon Lord,” he said, laying his palms on the table. “Why must you insist on making my life difficult?”

I scoffed and turned to the childlike god. “Could say the same thing to you. You dropped me into this world without a clue and only a whisper of a direction to go in. Whose fault is it that I’m going off script?”

He laughed and inclined his head to me, his sunlit eyes glowing radiantly. “Touché. Though it matters little, it should be an excellent show regardless. Though I am impressed you held your own against her in that fight. My Archangel has had much more time to grow stronger, but she spends most of her time helping others these days.” He winked at me. “Maybe this was just the push she needed to step her game up.”

Callisto disappeared and reappeared next to the coffee maker. He grabbed a cup and poured, reappearing next to me and handing me the coffee. “Here, a reward for exceeding my expectations of you. You’ve done remarkably well so far.”

I took the offered coffee and took a sip. It was heavenly. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, I guess.”

“You’re welcome. But don’t get too confident just yet. There are things in motion that will test the limits of your resolve, and they are approaching faster─”

Callisto stopped mid-sentence and turned his head to the door. He paused for a long moment before his face fell. His expression turned into a grimace, and he gripped the edge of the table hard enough that the cheap wood snapped like a twig.

The crack was a gunshot to the others, and Finn and Salvatore went for their guns while Adeline slid to the edge of the booth, her hand primed for a spell.

I eyed Callisto. “What’s going on?”

He stood from the booth with a heavy sign. “A complication.” His roiling eyes flashed. “Even if I didn’t exactly have a choice, I should’ve never let her near you. She’s bad enough, but her sisters don’t have half her restraint, and are far more troublesome.”

Callisto walked to the counter and leaned against it, watching the door. I got up out of the seat and walked beside him.

“What are you talking about? Whose sisters? Is someone coming?”

He nodded. “Yep, a giant pain in my ass. If you strain those nubs on the side of your head, you’ll probably be able to hear her.”

I did as he suggested and listened. For a long moment, there was nothing but the quiet hum of the lights overhead and the rhythmic breathing of the five of us, but after a second, there was a new noise.

It was a low, growling roar of an engine. Someone was heading toward us in a vehicle.

“Is that a─”

“It’s a motorcycle,” Finn said.

We all stared at the door as the rumbling engine drew ever closer, and I drew my sword.

“Is it trouble, Cal?”

“The worst kind, but lower your weapons, and whatever you do, don’t attack her. You’ll get us all killed.”

“What?” I spluttered. “But you’re a god!”

He silenced me with a wave and eyed the door. Each passing second increased my heartbeat as apprehension built in my chest.

A minute later, the motorcycle appeared in front of the shop. Even through the darkened glass, it wasn’t hard to make out. It was a cherry red cruiser. There was a single rider, and Callisto was right. From her figure, she was definitely a woman.

She threw the kickstand and climbed off her bike before sauntering towards the door.

The girl was on the taller side, probably just below six feet. She wore a full-faced helmet with a darkened visor and a leather jacket over a tight-fitting red T-shirt with the collar cut off and sliced, revealing the upper portion of her chest. She had on dark wash jeans and black leather biker boots.

I gasped when she entered.

Her clothes or posture didn’t matter to my Demonic Gaze.

She had more magic than I’d ever seen before. It rolled off her in waves and sent shivers up my spine as ozone burned in my nose.

She’s got more power than Julia and I combined, and then double or triple it.

Who is she?

The girl looked around the room before her eyes settled on mine. She took off her helmet and tossed it aside. It disappeared before it hit the ground.

Long, crimson red hair flowed around her shoulders when she took her helmet off. Her skin was tanned, with only a couple of freckles across her nose. She had an angular face and tight cheekbones, but small lips and almond eyes balanced her sharper features. Her eyes were the same color as her hair, and they shone like rubies as she looked past me to Callisto and smirked.

Callisto sighed. “Hello, War.”

War? As in the horseman?

She scowled. “Callisto.” War shook her head. “Leave. I need to have a conversation with your little toy here, and I find your presence annoying,” she said, her voice thick and rich but with a sharp bite on the end.

“You have no authority to order me around.”

She held out her hand, and a large silver revolver appeared in her grip. “No, but I have six bullets and an itchy trigger finger. I don’t like your chances.”

Callisto scowled. “I won’t forget this.”

“Yeah, yeah. Consider us even for not consulting me before deciding to end the goddamn world. All four of us have a say, not just Death.”

He chuckled. “Fair enough.” Callisto then turned to me. “We shall speak later, my Demon Lord.”

As soon as he was gone, the girl’s posture relaxed, and she stowed away her gun. As she looked at me once more, a bright smile appeared on her face.

“So, you’re the human my sister’s fallen for?” She shrugged. “You’re cute enough, so I guess I can see it.”

“Thanks, I guess.” I inclined my head to her. “What can I do for the Incarnation of War?”

War smiled even wider. “Polite too. Seems Death picked a good one. But to answer your question, it’s what I can do for you.”

I went over and sat next to her at the table. I leaned back and waited to hear what she had to say.

“I originally came to witness the fight between you and the angel.” She thumbed back towards the door. “From the mess outside, I missed one hell of a fight.”

“Depends on your definition, I suppose.” I rubbed my shoulder. “But no one died, so it can’t have been that epic.”

She snorted. “I wouldn’t be so quick to say that. Once I reached the city, I felt an aura, and it spells trouble for you.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Your fight against the White, hell, even the proximity between you two, has stirred up a whole heap of trouble.

“Callisto’s little abominations are reacting to the mere presence of you two, and I’m afraid your little clash today had more of an impact than you were expecting.”

She paused, her crimson eyes grim as she spoke again.

“You’ve awoken a particularly nasty monster, and it’s coming for the city.”

“What’s coming?”

“One of the four Cardinal Beasts. A world-boss-tiered monster. Leviathan.”

End of Book 1

Ending Stats!

Character Page

Name: Killian Dunn

Race: Human

Class: Demon Lord (King)

Health: 800/800 (880)

Mana: 850/850

Stamina: 800/800

Level: 25

Exp: 2369/4465

Skill Points Available: 1

Stat Page

Strength: 60

Constitution: 60

Perception: 35

Endurance: 60

Agility: 55

Wisdom: 65

Charisma: 50

Current Skills

Demon Form (First Form)

Demon Form (Second Form)

Displacement (Rank 1)

Demonic Gaze (Passive)

Rend (Rank 1)

Void Bullet (Rank 1)

Siphon (Rank 1)

Blight (Rank 1)

Thank you for reading!

If you are reading this, thank you for making it to the end! This story has some history, and it holds a very special place in my heart. This is the first story I ever wanted to write, and it has been ten years in the making.

I first had the idea for this novel when I was standing in line with my friends for the midnight release of Skyrim way back in 2011. I was playing chess with a friend (Yes, I was that cool.) while another played an RPG on his Nintendo DS. As I glanced over, I had the thought, what if you played an RPG based on chess where the individual pieces had different classes? And thus the kernel for this story was born. Though I didn’t really do anything with it, but it sat in the back of my head and in my Notes app, waiting for a time that I didn’t know would ever come.

But when I started my writing journey with Hive Knight, my first novel, I knew then that I had what it took to actually sit down and write a novel. When I finished Hive Knight, I sat down and started writing Apocalypse Game, previously known as The Chessboard Wars. The first draft was eighty thousand words. And it was bad. Oh, it was bad. It was essentially a very lengthy outline. And instead of scrapping it, I went back and built on it, added to it, and fleshed out everything. The second draft was a hundred and twenty thousand, and it was a lot better in some regards, but weaker in others. So, I stripped the barebones system I had in place and gave it an overhaul, bringing the lessons I learned from Hive Knight and my Isekai Assassin series and turned it into what you have just read.

This is the novel that started it all, and so it is only fitting that it be the story that starts so many other beginnings. If you’ve read my Hive series, then you will see some bits of familiarity in the stories.

That is because they are connected to my multiverse.

But this is the novel that kick starts it all.

And it is my pleasure to welcome you to, hopefully, the start of something great.

Welcome to my Shardverse.

─Grayson Sinclair

Other Books by me!

Wyvern Academy: Battle Academy OELN

Hive Knight: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG

Isekai Assassin: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG

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Table of Contents

- Title Page
- Copyright
- Dedication
- Chapter 1- Monday Morning Hell
- Chapter 2- Tuesday Blues
- Chapter 3- The Mantle
- Chapter 4- No Shotguns in the Halls
- Chapter 5- Carnival Beasts
- Chapter 6- Vicious Pieces
- Chapter 7- Grissom City
- Chapter 8- Fire and Fury
- Chapter 9- Crabfest
- Chapter 10- The Charade King
- Chapter 11- Fate and Fear
- Chapter 12- Fort Alexander
- Chapter 13- Mercenaries Wanted
- Chapter 14- Digressing and Side Questing
- Chapter 15- The Grind
- Chapter 16- Depths of Depravity
- Chapter 17- Truth and Reconciliation
- Chapter 18- Much Bigger Fish
- Chapter 19- Assault on Grissom Mall
- Chapter 20- Where to Draw the Line?
- Chapter 21- A Choice to Make
- Chapter 22- Change in Management
- Chapter 23- Eastbound and Down
- Chapter 24- Midnight Jungle
- Chapter 25- Into the Dark
- Chapter 26- Overrun
- Chapter 27- Yankee Stadium
- Chapter 28- The Statue King
- Chapter 29- The Archangel of the White
- Chapter 30- The Demon Lord of the Black
- Chapter 31- Kings in Check
- Ending Stats!
- Thank you for reading!
- Other Books by me!