Melee

by Wyatt Savage

  Something the size of a full-grown elephant.

  It was stooped over, feeding on the survivors of some horrible car crash.

  The thing heard us and turned, its enormous bloodsoaked jaws filled with gore, somebody’s severed leg dangling from its massive teeth.

  Lish jammed on the brakes and we slid right into it.

  25

  The truck slid for fifty feet and hammered into the side of the beast before spinning to a stop. The headlights went out, plunging everything into darkness.

  Dwayne looked up and yawned. “How long have I been asleep?”

  I put my finger to my lips, grabbed an assault rifle, and pushed open my door. The others followed me out and we crouched and waited. Nothing stirred, but the air had that sulfurous, alien funk.

  “What’s going on?” Dwayne whispered.

  “Um, we kind of hit a monster,” I said.

  He adjusted his glasses and cradled his rifle as we inched around the front of the truck. There was a bottleneck of cars up ahead and bodies, a shitload of bodies.

  Some of them were largely intact, but others had been feasted upon.

  I scanned my SecondSight HUD and spotted a roostertail of blood on the road along with mighty footprints that led off into the shrubbery.

  A black dot blinked on my HUD which provided the monster’s stats:

  Species: Bothros Monstrum

  Level:1

  Class:Monster

  Health:10/10

  Attributes:An all-consuming predator with advanced burrowing capabilities; infrared vision; incapable of feeling pain.

  “Everybody see that?” I asked.

  “Pit,” Dwayne said.

  “What?”

  “Bothros means pit. Why would they use Greek and Latin words?”

  “So that thing’s a pit monster?” I asked, ignoring his question.

  He nodded and pointed and I saw the huge holes on either side of the road and mounds of dirt. Apparently, the beast had burrowed up from somewhere down below.

  I checked my HUD, using my night vision to sweep the areas around us. “It’s not moving.”

  “Great,” Dwayne said. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  Another black dot popped up on my HUD. This one on the road behind the truck, maybe sixty yards away.

  “We’ve got another,” I said.

  “Two more,” Dwayne corrected as I saw two additional black dots in the other direction.

  “Guess we won’t be driving out of here,” I said.

  Dwayne pointed to the field. “We’ll have to go on foot.”

  “How about we try and fly,” Lish said with a smile.

  Off my confused look she waved her fingers, commandeering the holo-lift, which drifted through the air so that we could access it.

  “Climb aboard,” she said.

  “Why didn’t we do this before?”

  “I just thought about it.”

  The three of us climbed onto the holo-lift which bobbed like a boat on the water. Lish twirled her fingers and the holo-lift began hover-surfing through the air at roughly ten miles per hour as I pointed us in the general direction of my brother’s neighborhood.

  “They’re coming,” Dwayne said.

  I checked my HUD to see that he was right. All of the black dots were moving.

  “Put this thing into fifth gear,” Dwayne said.

  “I didn’t have the points for an upgrade,” Lish replied. “This is as fast as she can go.”

  As if we were riding on top of some old covered wagon in a Western movie, the three of us grabbed our guns and got ready. The monsters were moving faster now, headed toward us. I squinted and saw shapes toiling in the murkiness.

  “They’re coming,” I said.

  “Pack up the babies and grab the old ladies,” Dwayne muttered, raising his gun.

  The monsters were visible, running on their hands like primates.

  “Let ‘em have it!” Lish screamed.

  Flames leaped from the barrels of our guns. The bullets struck the monsters, my HUD showing that they’d lost health points.

  -2 Health Points! For one.

  -3 Health Points! For another.

  The HUD might’ve said that the beasts couldn’t feel pain, but they squealed and vanished from sight.

  “Down,” Dwayne said. “They’re going down!”

  I sifted through the windows on my HUD, able to drill down literally into the ground using a 3-D map of the area. The monsters were indeed moving at great speed directly at us.

  “HEAD LEFT!” I shouted.

  Lish piloted the holo-lift to the left as one of the monsters erupted from the ground to the right.

  We shot the monster point-blank. I delivered the killshot, squeezing off a burst of bullets that shattered the thing’s skull like an overripe melon.

  -8 Health Points!

  “Congratulations,” Sue said. “You have killed a Level 1 monster and gained 25 experience points. You now have 198 experience points.”

  I pumped my fist and slapped palms with Dwayne when another creature sprang out of the ground directly under us.

  It slammed into the holo-lift and sent us and our supplies flying into the air.

  I flew through the air and landed hard on my shoulder. My rifle slipped out of my hand and I rolled over, a status update popping up to reflect:

  Species: Homo Sapiens (James, Logan)

  Chattel:

  Health:9/10

  Level 1:1

  Class:Fighter

  Kills:7

  Vitals:BP – 127/80; T – 98.01f; RR – 19bpm

  XP:198

  Dammit! The hard landing had cost me a health point and all of my vitals were spiking.

  I searched for and found my gun. Rising, I saw that I was in the middle of a corn field, separated from Dwayne and Lish by several hundred feet.

  Stumbling back, the ground trembled and the hands on one of the monsters shot up out of the ground. Debris mushroomed into the air and I fired into the thing’s chest.

  -3 Health Points!

  Blood jetted, but the thing pulled itself up out of the hole and lurched at me.

  I fired a round that ripped out its eye and then it lashed out in anger.

  One of its long, trunklike arms struck me in the gut and I watched my feet leave the ground as I flew sideways again.

  -1 Health Point!

  Groaning, I used my rifle to torque myself up, realizing I only had fifteen bullets left.

  The wounded creature pawed at the ground like a bull and charged.

  I ran in the other direction, toward Lish, who was on her back trying to get away from another one of the things that was surging towards her like a land shark.

  I emptied out my gun, willing a line of bullets into the snout of the monster that was nearly upon Lish, blowing the beast’s face off.

  Lish was pointing, stabbing a finger at something lying in the dirt.

  Her phaser.

  I ran and dove, stretching my arms out.

  I grabbed the phaser as my HUD congratulated me and added it to my chattel box.

  Something grabbed my legs.

  Before I knew what was happening, I was on my back, the moon visible overhead as I was pulled violently across the field, losing yet another health point.

  My head smacked the cold ground and I elbowed myself up to see that the other monstrosity had its talons around my feet.

  It was dragging me toward a huge hole in the middle of the field.

  “Hey asshole!” I shouted.

  The monster stopped and looked back.

  I fired the phaser and a curved beam of light cleaved a hole in the monster’s throat. It released its grip on me and pawed at the hole, trying to figure out why it could no longer breathe.

  -9 Health Points!

  Righting myself, I fired again, burning a hole through its gut.

  “Congratulations,” Sue said. “You have killed a Level 1 monster and gained 25 experience points. You
now have 227 experience points.”

  Then I pivoted and did the same thing to the monster that was squaring off against Dwayne, who was running sideways, spraying bullets at the charging horror.

  My energy beam melted one of the thing’s legs.

  -1 Health Point!

  Then I fired again and again, burning the thing’s legs, killing it point by point until it toppled over and Dwayne finished the thing off to acquire some points.

  Great. I’d banked some good experience points, but lost three health points in the process.

  Breath steaming in the cold air, I removed the magazine from my gun and made my way over to Lish and Dwayne.

  With a hearty groan, Lish stood and dusted herself off. I handed her the phaser and she pointed at the monster I’d shot before I pounced on her.

  “I could’ve taken care of that thing myself, y’know.”

  I nodded. “I know.”

  “But thanks,” she whispered, tipping her head.

  “How you doing, big guy?” I asked Dwayne.

  He bobbed around, throwing some mock punches. “I’m up to a hundred and thirty-two points, baby. I’m feeling like a certified badass.”

  Something roared in the distance and Dwayne jumped a foot in the air.

  Realizing there was little chance we’d be able to make it back to the truck, we gathered up as much of the loot as we could and piled it back on top of the holo-lift. Then we rode the lift across the field and up a hill toward my brother’s neighborhood.

  Looking back, I surveyed the areas behind us. The horizon glowed with an orange light, either fires or explosions, and the air was filled with screams, the far-off barking of dogs, and the braying of creatures that were definitely not from our world.

  “What’s the SITREP, Sue?” I asked via Mindspeak.

  “There are approximately one hundred and ninety-eight thousand participants within a thirteen-mile radius.”

  “Jesus, there were more than three hundred thousand before.”

  “The casualty rate for the first few hours of the Onslaught is generally in excess of fifty-seven percent.”

  “That doesn’t seem fair.”

  “Fairness is a concept that is foreign to the Noctem. What matters is that all are equal in the Melee.”

  “There isn’t going to be anyone left soon.”

  “There are no accolades for those found wanting,” Sue intoned.

  “How many more points do I need for a Ragetag?” I asked.

  “Seventy-three.”

  I’d be able to get some of those points just by staying alive, but at some point, I was going to need to kill something.

  Lish grabbed my arm. “Okay, time to spill the beans.”

  “About what?”

  “The place with the weapons and gear you were talking about. The secret vault.”

  I removed the laminated card from my pocket and ran a finger over the coordinates. Then I explained again that my brother had the other coordinates and that the facility was located not too far away.

  Dwayne looked off in the distance. “We’ll go to your brother’s place first...”

  “And then we’ll hit the vault,” I said.

  Dwayne smiled wearily. “You know what this is, don’t you?”

  “One of the dumbest things I’ve ever done in my life?”

  Dwayne waved his hand. “Besides that.”

  “A possible suicide mission?”

  “Besides that.”

  “What?”

  “A quest.”

  I took this in and looked up, spotting a familiar sight, a patch of ground near an old farm where we used to pick strawberries during the early summer. My brother’s place was just on the other side, a small neighborhood of nice houses on large lots that had been built in the 70s. We crested a ridge and there it was. Sean’s neighborhood.

  There was only one problem.

  All of the houses were covered in a kind of film.

  What looked like silk from a gigantic spider’s web.

  26

  I jumped down from the lift and struck off toward the backyard, oblivious to the boxes that were blinking on my HUD.

  Twenty paces from the pool, I was tackled to the ground by Dwayne.

  “Your ass is lucky that I’ve still got some of my super speed.”

  “Let go,” I said, trying to shrug him off. “Let go of me!”

  He was pointing and that’s when I looked up to see it.

  The figure standing a few steps outside the sliding glass door, where the deck was. I knew her silhouette well enough to recognize my brother’s wife.

  She was standing on the deck, gesturing in my direction.

  But she wasn’t moving at all.

  Dwayne let me go and I stood, scanning my HUD, which showed that there were no bad guys within a quarter mile of our location.

  “Kate,” I said.

  She didn’t move.

  “Kate!” I repeated, louder this time.

  No reaction, and when I took several steps forward I saw that she appeared to be frozen, locked in place by the webbing or silk, or whatever the hell it was. It was all over her body, cocooning her, her health points down to two. I stepped on a patch of the stuff on the ground and it was sticky. Only with much effort was I able to pry my boot loose.

  I drew close to Kate and saw that her face was locked in a frozen, wordless scream. It was as if she’d been trying to flee from the house when she was caught.

  “You know her?” Lish asked.

  I nodded. “My sister-in-law.”

  “Where’s your brother?” Dwayne asked.

  I didn’t answer him. I was too busy pushing through the sliding glass doors. There were several candles flickering inside on a long kitchen table. The power had gone off and Sean had probably had them ready to go. He was always like that, always thinking ahead.

  A sour taste filled my mouth when I saw the green splotches on the kitchen floor, the last resting place of Sean’s kids, Nick and Kira. A lump formed in my throat because I remembered the days before. I remembered visiting the family in the hospital when both were born. I remembered the birthdays and the Christmases, and all the other little moments, a kaleidoscope of images playing out in front of me like some cosmic movie reel set on fast-forward.

  In the middle of the green splotches was a single item.

  A child’s tiny wind-up toy.

  I plucked the toy up and pocketed it when something echoed.

  A note, a groan.

  A man’s voice.

  It was coming from down the hall!

  Quick as a reflex, I bounded down the hall and saw a form splayed on the ground. It looked like he’d been covered by one of those machines that flocks Christmas trees white, but I recognized him.

  “Sean!” I screamed at my brother.

  He didn’t move, but my HUD showed that he was alive, although he was down to three health points.

  I slid to the ground and grabbed his body. The white stuff covering him felt like cotton candy. I tore at it, ripping it away from his clothes, his mouth.

  He gasped horribly, his eyes rolling over white in their sockets.

  I placed my hand under his head and eased him up. His breathing was bad, coming in short, stabbing gasps, but at least he was alive.

  “It’s Logan, Sean. I’m here.”

  His eyes opened and I hugged my brother more tightly than I’d ever hugged anyone before.

  “You came,” he whispered, “you came for us.”

  “We have to leave right now.”

  Sean’s eyes roamed the room. “Nick and Kira…and Kate…where are they?”

  Jesus, he didn’t know.

  I didn’t say a word, but my eyes betrayed me. “Get me up,” he said. “I need to know, I have to see them.”

  “No, Sean, there’s no—”

  “Goddammit, get me up!”

  Wrapping my arm around his upper body, I helped him to his feet. It took him several seconds to get his feet
back, but then he was moving, hands out against the walls to brace himself.

  “KATIE!” he shouted. “KIRA! NICK!”

  I was several steps behind him, urging to stop. He roamed into the kitchen and fell to his knees near the green splotches. Then slowly he stood and I knew what he was looking at. Christ, he’d seen Kate.

  “Don’t!” I said. “Do not go out back, Sean!”

  He stumble-stepped forward and that’s when I saw it.

  Kate was gone.

  Slashing through the back door I saw Dwayne and Lish. They were comforting Kate, who was lying on the deck.

  “Get the fuck away from her!” Sean shouted.

  I waved my arms. “They’re with me, Sean! They’re friends.”

  He shoved both of them back and fell to his knees alongside Kate whose color was bad, but otherwise appeared unharmed.

  Lish grabbed my arm and ushered me over next to Dwayne. “Something’s wrong,” she whispered.

  “Just figuring that out, huh?”

  She angled her face at Kate. “No, I mean something is wrong with her, Logan.”

  “She’s making strange sounds,” Dwayne said.

  “She’s fine,” I replied. “She’s probably a little freaked out, but otherwise she’s—”

  “What did this?” Dwayne asked, cutting me off.

  “What?”

  “What put all the white stuff down?” Dwayne asked, kicking at the cotton-candy-like substance on the ground.

  Lish pointed up and my HUD chimed.

  The sky was filled with what appeared to be parachutists at first.

  “What’s the SITREP, Sue?”

  “The Noctem have deemed you a contender.”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  “Everyone who has survived this long is in the top twenty-percent of all participants.”

  “Lucky us.”

  “The Noctem will now focus their resources on participants like you.”

  “What’s the takeaway?”

  “The game will become more difficult.”

  Exactly what I didn’t want to hear.

  “In what way?”

  “They are sending down some of their unwanted.”

  “Alien prisoners?”

  “In a sense. They are warriors looking for redemption.”

  I scanned the HUD to see that there were sixty-seven vaguely humanoid forms dropping down through the air. Upon closer inspection I saw that they weren’t using parachutes, but silver leaders, long ropelike strands of what appeared to be cable or wire. They were riding the leaders down toward us.