Chương 9: Nowhere to Run

"Now!" Edwin shouted out the order, making Arthur dip down, taking a knee in the water. Susan did the same. All three archers fired their bows at the same time. Glenn had calmed down from the first sighting of a Skulker. It seemed like he wasn't lying about his archery skill; the arrow dug deep into the front beast's chest, taking it down with a splash. Edwin's bolt landed next, straight in the eye. It killed the monster instantly. The last one, Jake missed.

Not completely, though, the arrow pinning into its shoulder. It did little to stop the beast, but this time, everyone did what was expected of them, the initial panic mostly gone. Arthur took the brunt of the impact of the charge, a thin layer of mana shattering in front of his shield before the rest of the strike landed against metal. He slid back slightly. Susan screamed, lashing out from behind Arthur.

Her attack held no ounce of form, the cleaver in her hand wildly finding the stomach of the Skulker as she gored it. She was on top in seconds, one swing, two swings, carving a masterwork of violence into the monster's chest. She screamed, blood splashing over her. The Skulker's claws found her thigh, arms, and even a claw across her face. She refused to stop. Jake frowned. Note to self: do not get on her bad side. It was long dead, but she kept on going.

"I didn't get a notification!" Glenn's shout arrived too late. From underneath the murky waters, the Skulker that Glenn had injured ruptured from the surface, dark, grotty teeth on full display and claws ready to gore at Edwin. Thankfully, Edwin remained calm. He simply let go of his hand-crossbow, letting it drop into a makeshift sling he'd rigged out of a shoelace, swiftly unsheathing a long combat knife. He slashed its collarbone, blade's edge nipping into bone.

The Skulker found its target, raking across the neck area of his shoulder and down across his collar-bone—a tooth-for-a-tooth. Susan was still locked in her madness. Chloe had turned on her heels, jabbing her spear into the Skulker's body, but it hit bone. Sloane was about to try and help but thought better of it. She kept her attention on her surroundings. Or was she frozen in fear? If she did, she was good at hiding it. Jake had readied another arrow; he could help.

But a strange, bubbling sound caught his attention from behind. He spun on his heels and scanned the area, only to catch nothing. Lyle quickly rested his axe against the wall, grabbed hold of the Skulker's arm, lifting it off Edwin, and threw the monster off of him. The Skulker tried getting up but Lyle booted the monster in the face, sending it back into the oily water. Finally, Susan had come to. She turned, cleaving her blade into the beast's neck. Blood spurted.

Veins had risen from her hands and arm and her muscles bulged further than they had before. The Skulker refused to die. It clawed around itself. Susan was forced to step back, as did the others. Arthur glanced behind, his eyes meeting Jake's.

"Are you going to help or not?!" Jake ignored him. If they couldn't handle an injured monster, then they didn't deserve the help. He heard those bubbles again. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Jake," Sloane said from behind.

"I think I see someth—" She wasn't able to finish her sentence. From one of the darker hallways, a Skulker almost twice as large as the others, emerged. Two small stubby horns jutted out its head. It held a large serrated knife.

"Jake!" Sloane screamed out loud.

"I see it!" Jake was already prepared. He loosed the arrow immediately upon seeing the creature, the arrow flying through the air. It was about to sink into its face, a range that Jake was surprised to even hit, but the monster moved its head at the last second, the arrow vanishing into the dark of the corridor. Its lips curled up into a cruel smile and then stepped. Water shot up from where it left, and in an instant, had already moved ten feet in one single step. Jake's eyes widened.

He hurried another arrow and fired, hitting its stomach. It didn't seem to do much. He reloaded as quickly as he could and fired another, this one planting in its thigh. Now it was in front of Sloane. Snarling, she stepped and swung her sword in a clean arc at the Skulker's neck. The beast raised its own knife and parried, sending a backhand to her face. She slammed against the wall, dazed. Arthur and the others had realised what was going on.

It was Edwin who had finally got the best of the beast, skewering his knife into the gap between its ribs, leaking red all over him. Arthur didn't know what to do; move and give up his position in the formation, or run to help? He stayed. Gritting his teeth, Jake summoned Gutter-Tooth and wrapped the chain around his arm—the jagged chain bit deep into his flesh. Blood leaked. The monster was on him. Jake raised his arm and took the hit head-on, the knife slamming down on his arm.

Sparks flew, and the resulting shock brought Jake to his knees, sending the chain further into his flesh. He ignored the pain tormenting him. He heard the next attack before he could even see it and instinctively dropped further into the water. The knife screamed by his head and dug into an overturned fridge. Edwin, by this time, had reloaded his crossbow and fired a bolt into the monster's eye. It didn't go as deep as he wanted it to, however. Glenn, even in his panic, also managed to fire an arrow.

It dug into its neck. In a bellowing rampage, the Skulker stomped at Jake, narrowly avoiding crushing open his skull. Instead of running away, Jake stepped forwards, slashing his scythe across the muscle in the monster's leg. The beast shrieked and fell to one knee. Two more skulkers emerged from Arthur's side. They turned to engage it. Not realising that he'd been abandoned, without letting up, Jake coiled the jagged chain around its throat and pulled.

The metal links turned tight and he felt the tension spread up his arm. The Skulker choked and spit. An enormous amount of strength burst out from the beast—perhaps its last—and hoisted Jake overhead. He tried to fight against it, but the monster was far too strong. He slammed into the water, something sharp entering his side. Through the murky water, his vision blurred. Another arrow pelted into the beast's chest. It raised its knife and sent it down point first.

Eyes wide, he braced one foot on the floor then arced his hips and launched a kick upwards, striking the Skulker's chin before the blade found him. He scrambled onto his feet and slashed the scythe across the monster's throat. Bolstered by the stats of the weapon, the bladed edge dug through flesh, sundering open a wound knuckle deep in its throat. Dark, sickly blood sprayed, showering Jake entirely. His weapon faintly glowed, and he made use of its ability right away, casting Minor Heal on his back.

He searched for the culprit of discomfort and found it: a piece of scrap metal with a nasty point. He pulled, ripping flesh that instantly turned hot and itchy and knit back together with increased potency. (Lvl 5) Skulker defeated Rewards: One Level Jake coughed and spluttered and stood, stumbling on the way up as he used the wall for balance. And the water? Yeah, it tasted like shit.

By this point, Susan had climbed on top of one of the Skulkers and was busy giving it no chance to fight back, cleaving it apart with her weapon. Chloe skewered the last one with her spear, foot on the monster's chest as she pulled it out. He was about to take a step towards them when he saw light squeezing out from the door next to him. He was next to a door? He hadn't even realised it. This one was… strange. Mana had coalesced in front of it like a barrier.

He stuck his hand through it and felt the deep fuzz that he had expected. The door had no number, just words: Verdant Expanse. Now that he thought of it, the doors should have been the exact same as below, spaced apart by around two metres, and fifteen doors to a hallway. There was only one door in the entire corridor.

"Jake," Sloane came over, holding her side, other hand tight on her sword's handle. She had a cracked lip and it was evident she wasn't all there just yet.

"What are you doing?"

"I… want to open it." So that's what he did. He grabbed hold of the door handle, lowered it, then pushed. The door opened. A wall of light hit him, along with the overpowering minty perfume of pine. It took his eyes a minute to adjust, blinking away the temporary blindness. A moment later, a world of trees and verdant grass billowed in the heavy breeze. It was a portal to a new world.

"Run!" Arthur's scream arrived. His voice was steeped in horror as he, along with the others, dashed back into the corridor Jake was in. They looked like they'd all seen a ghost. A thunderous step vibrated through the floorboards, causing the ankle-deep water to wave out in circles. It told Jake everything he needed to know—a monster had appeared. They were trapped with nowhere to run.