Nightmare Realm Summoner

Chapter 54: Not Normal

A low, creaking moan echoed out from the enormous gateway rising before the city. The massive hands clutching at the doors were slow and ponderous as they pulled, grinding the towering doors open at a rate of inches per minute.

Alex and Claire set a hasty course toward the edge of town. They weren't the only ones. A small crowd of somewhere around thirty or so survivors had already gathered there. They took cover around piled monster bodies and behind the remains of their barricades, staring up at the gateway in horror and disbelief.

"What in the everloving fuck is that?" one man muttered as Alex and Claire pushed past him. He didn't even notice their passing — his attention was completely fixed on the monster struggling to free itself from the void within the gate.

A second hand of bone bloomed in the darkness and grabbed onto the second door. The creaking noises echoing across the fields grew louder, the black mist enshrouding everything trembled as if in fear.

"Why does it have to be bone?" Claire muttered as she and Alex came to a stop near the front of the crowd to join in the gawking. "Why couldn't it be a giant meat-monster? Something nice and soft and fleshy?"

"I thought you didn't mind what kind of blood something has as long as it's got it."

"Does that look like it has blood to you?" Claire asked.

"Touché. Maybe it's only got boney hands and the rest of it is normal."

Claire levied a flat stare at him. "Do you really believe that?"

"Not really, no."

The crowd behind them parted and Ben limped out from within it, using his axe like a crutch. His left leg was mangled and carved to ribbons. He'd bandaged it heavily with what seemed to be several shirts, all of which had been soaked through with blood. A pained grimace gripped at his features.

"Alex. Claire." Ben greeted them, but there wasn't much cheer in his voice.

"Is this everyone?" Alex asked, glancing over his shoulder to look back at the crowd.

"I don't know," Ben replied with a helpless shrug. His gaze lifted past Alex to the doorway rising in the distance. Ben swallowed. "It's hard to keep track in the chaos. I don't know what I'm doing, but I'm trying my best. Our losses haven't been light."

Another groan echoed from the darkness within the gate. A hand reached out from the shadows and slammed down on the door. That was the third one — which either meant Alex's count was somehow off or something had forgotten to teach the monster that sharing was caring and hording hands was rude.

"What the hell is that thing?" a female survivor said, shifting nervously in place as she ran her hand along the hilt of a curved sword at her side. "How are we supposed to fight something that big? Is this just some cruel joke?"

"This whole damn apocalypse has been a cruel joke."

Alex glanced over his shoulder as he recognized Isaiah's voice. The long-haired man caught his eye and averted his gaze instantly, moving to stand behind the woman. It didn't look like he wanted a repeat of their last interaction.

"I don't suppose you're high up on the leaderboard?" Ben asked, ignoring Isaiah. "And possibly have a few hundred vats of anti-bone juice?"

Alex chuckled. "No anti-bone juice, I'm afraid. And I'm still alive. That counts for something, right?"

"I'm not blind, man. I've seen you fight, and I'm pretty sure better off than just alive. Just be careful. Someone's been hunting everyone doing well on the Leaderboard."

"Gentlewind," Alex confirmed with a nod, making no move to address Ben's guess as to his spot on the leaderboard. "I think he bit off more than he could chew."

"Good riddance," Ben muttered. "But it almost doesn't matter. The rest of us are shit out of luck. There's no way we can handle something this big. If we try, we'll just end up getting killed. I think it might be time to abandon the town."

A murmur of assent passed through the other survivors. The massive gateway trembled again. A fourth hand reached out from the darkness and latched onto the stone doors, aiding the other three in prying them open.

"How many bleeding hands does that thing have?" Claire asked.

"Maybe we were supposed to attack it before it got out," one of the survivors said.

"A bit late for that," Ben said, running a hand through his hair. "What am I going to do, give it a paper cut? Look at the size of its hands. I don't think I could hurt a monster that big even if it stood still for a whole ten minutes."

"Maybe that's the point. We can't win," Isaiah said. "We must have gotten unlucky. If we leave now, we can get away from the town before the monster reaches it. There's no way it's fast at that size."

"That means failing the Trial," Ben said. "And what about the people still in the town? It would take time to round everyone up. Some people are injured or taking cover. If we leave, they'll be stuck behind. Not all of them will retreat in time."

"Man, that's their problem."

"I'm not going to try telling you that you have to stick around and fight," Ben said, pinching the bridge of his nose and letting out a sigh. "But we can do more than just run. There's time, especially if some of us stall that monster. You can help evacuate the town. Get the non-combatants out."

"And risk sticking around and getting my bucket kicked?" Isaiah let out a snort, and judging by the looks in the crowd, he wasn't alone in his opinion. Isaiah shook his head. "This is all bullshit. Fuck the system and fuck you. I'm not sitting around here and getting myself killed so you can play mayor. I'm leaving — and anyone that doesn't want to get themselves killed is welcome to follow me. It's safer out there than it is here," Isaiah said with a shake of his head. He took a step back, then turned and strode away from the town.

Ben raised a hand, but Isaiah was already leaving.

The other survivors exchanged glances. They looked from Towntown to the gate that was now nearing completely opened. A woman broke away from the crowd and followed after Isaiah.

Others poured after her until just under three quarters of the remaining survivors had split off. Ben's jaw clenched. His hands tightened, knuckles going white around the haft of his axe.

Alex barely even noticed the people leaving. He didn't care much what the survivor did — less people here just meant less ways he'd have to split the rewards. Alex pulled the mirror cards from the box at his waist and examined them. Both Glint and Spark had long since returned. His monsters still hadn't been powered up yet and that was how he preferred to keep it — but depending on how powerful the approaching monster was, there was a chance he'd have to power them up.

"You were right when you called them cowards," a Novice 4 survivor identified by the system as Mary said. She adjusted her grip on a long staff in her hands and spat on the ground. "I hope they all get killed."

"It's their choice to make," Ben said. "I can't ask people to die, and they're probably right. We're fucked. It's going to be hard to evacuate the town, but if you're all still willing to help, we can save a lot of lives. Alex—"

"I'm not evacuating anyone. Sorry," Alex shook his head and raised his gaze from his mirror cards. He nodded to the monster. "I'm going over there."

Ben's eyes bulged. "What? Do you not see how big that thing is? We might have been able to stall it with all thirty-odd of us, but just you?"

"I'm going as well," Claire said.

"So you'll take two seconds to die instead of one," another survivor said. "Why kill yourselves? We could use the help evacuating."

The conversation was interrupted by an echoing boom. Everyone spun back to the gateway. A pitch black void filled its entirety. The doors had been completely pushed open. For a long second, there was silence.

What could only be described as a wave of bone hands spilled from within the gate. They clambered over each other as they grasped into the earth, digging huge furrows through the grass and dirt as a twisted abomination dragged itself free of the darkness with a keening moan.

There was no logic to the monster's form. It was a teeming mass of undulating bone and soggy gray flesh. Arms and legs emerged from its body in a flail of haphazard limbs that all worked in unison to pull it toward the town at a steady pace.

Alex caught a glimpse of a sharp, triangular beak like that of a squid nestled somewhere within the nest of skeletal body parts. Every movement the monster made was equally parts a rattling roar and a wet squelch.

Crawling Tomb (Initiate 1)

Alex scratched at the side of his jaw. Initiate 1 wasn't exactly the strongest monster he and Claire had fought. It was definitely close to one of the largest given that the monster was roughly spherical in shape, but size wasn't everything.

Well, that explains all the extra hands earlier. Initiate 1 would be a huge threat for everyone else, but after the Mirrorlands… honestly, I'm not impressed. This will be easy.

"Oh, shit," Ben breathed, his eyes going as wide as saucers. "It's a Stage up on us. Everyone, move. Get the town evacuated and then get yourselves to safety. I think Isaiah had the right idea. We—"

Alex started toward the monster.

This shouldn't be too bad at all compared to the stuff I've been up against in the Mirrorlands. The System basically just gave me a score multiplier. Sweet.

"Alex!" Ben called, practically begging. "Come back, man! We can't fight something like this. Don't throw your life away!"

Mirrored claws carved through the air to Alex's right, rending the space behind them. Glint stepped into reality beside him. To Alex's left, there was a crackle of blue electricity. Spark emerged from within it, gauntlets tightening into fists as power siphoned into the center of his chitinous armor to form the slow-moving storm of lightning that made up his flesh.

"Worry about evacuating the town, Ben," Claire said, looking over her shoulder at him. "Your concern is appreciated, but it isn't needed."

"But—"

"I'd follow your own advice," Claire said with a smile.

"My own…" Ben trailed off. He looked from Alex to Claire, then to the advancing monster. His eyes widened. "The Leaderboard. You're Ash and Fangs?"

I suppose it's not like there's any point trying to hide it. It'll become obvious the moment we kill the Crawling Tomb and the leaderboard updates.

"I told you I was going to kill some monsters," Alex said, pausing to look back at Ben. "That isn't going to change just because a few people didn't stick around to back us up."

Ben swallowed, and the other survivors looked to each other in stunned disbelief as they tried to reconcile Alex and Claire with the figures at the top of the local leaderboard. The gap in numbers between them and everyone else was so significant that they might as well have been on entirely different battlefields.

"But… can you really beat something like that?" Ben asked, swallowing nervously. "I mean, look at it. It's massive."

Alex just smiled.

The Rolling Tomb is pretty intimidating, I'll give it that. To the other survivors, it might seem impossible to beat. But compared to what I've seen in the Mirrorlands….

This thing isn't a threat.

It's just a stepping stone in my way.