DARKNESS. HUMIDITY. BLOOD.
Clak! Clak! Clak!
The sound of my sandals slapping against the drenched concrete echoes like a death knell in the tunnel.
The air smells like moldy stone, coagulated blood, something foul that chokes you.
Rot, rusted metal, burnt ozone… it's suffocating, like the air itself is trying to swallow me whole.
Behind me, growls, animalistic grunts.
I glance back.
FATAL MISTAKE.
The silhouettes move too fast, almost invisible in the dim light.
Half-humans. Half-monsters.
Their bodies are mangled masses of shredded flesh, gaping wounds spilling out thick, black, viscous fluid, some kind of putrid poison.
Broken bones protrude, creaking with each movement.
Their monstrous fangs quiver in twisted snarls, vibrating with rage.
Their red eyes gleam with savage madness.
They're not chasing me.
They're HUNTING me.
— Shit… what the hell is this?!
SCREEEECH.
The screech of claws scraping the floor, metallic and chilling.
I dive.
ROLL & CRASH!
— I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die.
The ground slams into my ribs, each impact splitting my flesh.
The air burns my throat, taste of iron in my mouth.
A putrid groan blasts in my face.
A stench of rotting meat and burnt flesh.
A shadow brushes past me, too close, too fast.
— Fuck! These Patrick-ass kids are fast!
GLITCH.
My vision flickers.
[MEMORY ACCESSING]
A flash. A shiver.
[MEMORY LOADED]
A click.
[SKILL ACTIVATED]
In front of me!
The tunnel narrows.
The walls vibrate, symbols pulsing around me.
An electric jolt shoots up my spine.
[HUD INITIALIZED]
[WELCOME, WILLIAM]
[Tip: Run, Forest.]
— WHAT THE FUCK NOW?!
A cold, mechanical voice:
— Warning. Obstacle approaching. Evasive maneuver recommended.
— Evasive how, goddammit?!
My phone blinks green.
A monster leaps.
Instinctively, I tap the screen.
[ESCAPE MODE]
— HUH?!
The voice continues:
— One second. Critical impact risk.
— Impact imminent.
I veer wildly.
A claw rips my t-shirt.
— Fuck! My favorite Saint Seiya Omega t-shirt!
BOOM!
The monsters smash into the wall.
Ba Da Boom.
The wall explodes. Concrete shatters.
A burning gust licks my neck.
My brain BUGS OUT.
— Warning: Life expectancy plummeting. Suggestion: Forest Gump.
— OH SHIT! WHO THE HELL IS TALKING TO ME?!
— Hello, Master William. I'm Iris, your Intelligent and Strategic Search Interface.
I glance down. My phone shows:
[Updating: Restricted Access]
— Updating what?! There's no Wi-Fi in this cave!
No time.
I turn left.
Dead end.
— IRIS, ARE YOU A MOROCCAN GPS OR WHAT?!
— I told you to go right.
— When?!
I try to brake.
My sandal catches.
I slip on the sludge.
I pivot.
Face to face with the monsters.
Their eyes glow like embers.
Black saliva drips, hot, acidic.
One of them opens its mouth. A black abyss, lined with twisted fangs.
They savor my fear.
— NO NO NO!
POP.
[Run Mode: ACTIVATED]
[Environment Use: 40%]
— WHAT?!
— You can now use your environment.
My legs move on their own.
SPRINT.
— WAIT!! ARE YOU SURE ABOUT THIS?!
The wall gets closer.
— Yes. Jump.
[YAMAKASI MODE]
I bounce off a rusty crate.
Then off one of these abominations.
Mid-air, change direction.
Grab a chain.
I run on the wall.
Cling to a high ledge.
Verdict: Golden Buzzer.
No flash. No flowers.
Still alive.
— Me (shaking with excitement): Since when can I do that?!
Hope surges back.
I haul myself up using my arms.
My legs follow...
Clak!
A monster grabs my ankle.
KICK.
My left sandal flies into its face.
A few minutes later, breathless,
I finally reach the top.
I collapse against a column.
Silence.
— Ah. Silence.
— Course Mode completed. Level up.
— Did I REALLY just do that?!
— Correction: You evolve out of necessity.
I blink. But…
The growls return.
They've found me.
The cacophony of sounds overlaps.
A deep, tearing scream. A visceral pain. I shiver to the bone.
They're close. Just a few meters away.
I see them more clearly now, their twisted bodies, scaly skin, red eyes glowing.
This time… it's worse.
Faster. Fewer in number.
A chill of horror sweeps through me.
— They look just like the ones from the Village of the Damned.
It's like the scene is looping in my head… except I know the ending.
And it's obvious.
— It's always the black guy who dies first!
The monsters charge.
I'm standing, but not ready.
— Okay Iris, activate the "E.T. Phone Home" mode!
— Teleportation unavailable.
— Well, great, Iris.
I back up.
No way out.
The monsters advance, black drool falling in streams.
[Fusion Mode Download complete.]
— Do you wish to activate it?
— WHAT IF IT KILLS ME?!
— Response: You die a second time.
— … Huh?!
— Warning. Life expectancy: 7 seconds.
— BUT I HAVEN'T EVEN DIED ONCE YET!
— Correction: You don't know that.
— WHAT?! How the hell is that possible?!
The monsters charge.
The ground trembles.
— Life expectancy: 6 seconds.
— Fuck, Iris, activate it!
— Life expectancy: 5 seconds.
— ACTIVATE IT!
— System error. Force Fusion activation?
— Wait… Force?!
— Life expectancy: 3 seconds.
The vibrations in my bones open me up to a pain I've never felt before.
A shiver runs through me, my skin burns, my blood seems to boil in my veins.
[2 seconds.]
I'm on the verge of exploding. Everything around me distorts.
A shadow stretches beneath me.
It swallows the ground, pulling me toward it.
[1 second.]
TOO LATE.
Everything explodes.
The air becomes too heavy. My skin burns from the inside.
The walls tremble. My bones, my body, everything twists.
I lose all sense of time, of my body, until the fusion consumes me.
FUSION ACTIVATED.