Shawn left almost no room between himself and Anisha’s back as she rushed into the room. As they cleared the doorway, Shawn swept right and brought his rifle up to deal with any potential threats in the room. Kaylish mimicked his movements but swept to the left. The trio paused as their eyes adjusted to the dimmer interior of the basement.

            They stood in a large cement storage room with a twelve-foot ceiling. Though there were a few broken wooden boxes along the far-right wall, a majority of the space was vacant. Shawn could make out a silver door on the far side of the room that appeared to be the only way forward. Having reached the same conclusion, Anisha lifted her free hand and gestured for the group to approach the door. The trio maintained their loose triangle formation as they carefully walked across the room. When Anisha drew within a dozen feet of the metal door, a buzzer shattered the silence.

            Several things happened at once. A series of overhead lights sprang to life, blinding the group for a few seconds. A loud clang echoed out behind them, and once Shawn’s vision began to clear, he could see that the door leading outside had slammed shut on its own accord. The final event was the scratchy pop of a speaker coming to life.

            “I must applaud the military for exceeding my expectations.” A man’s voice announced over the unseen speaker. “I honestly didn’t expect such a rapid response to the outbreak. By my calculations, I had at least an hour before the first assault team broke down the front door. Congratulations are in order.”

            “What is this?” Shawn asked aloud as Anisha ran back to the exit.

            “Did they not tell you who you were to kill?” The man’s speech seemed a bit slurred over the speakers, but it did little to dull his incredulous tone. “Do I warrant so little recognition that they won’t even tell my killers my name?”

            “Locked.” Anisha announced before she began attempts to force it open.

            “Of course it is!” The volume of the man’s shouts distorted his audio. “Your lack of respect for my intelligence is worse than the fact that you’re here to kill me.”

            A gunshot rang out. Shawn reflexively ducked his head but found that it was Kaylish who had fired. Before Shawn could demand an explanation, he spotted the remains of an in-built speaker tucked into the cement wall.

            “This conversation isn’t getting us anywhere.” Kaylish stated as she chambered another round.

            “On that I’d have to agree.” The man’s voice could still be heard through the busted speaker, though, less clearly. “Perhaps the next team they send will have more respect for their target.”

            A rumble shook the ground and a piece of the floor near the wall on their right slid open. A loud mechanical whirring sound from below ramped up and something began to be lifted from the opening. Shawn’s heart sank.

            “Back up!” Shawn grabbed Kaylish’s arm and pulled her away from the opening. “Something’s coming out!”

            Anisha ran up and placed her armored self directly between Shawn and whatever foe was about to make its entrance. A hulking figure, chained to the elevator floor, smoothly rose into view. Though it appeared human, the sheer size of it made Shawn question his initial assessment. The creature, on its knees, was easily over seven feet tall. Scars coated every inch of the beast, some forming clearly defined lines periodically across its skin. It’s entire body seemed to be entirely made of muscle.

            Different types of muscles that is… Shawn’s fear spiked as he realized that the fine lines throughout its body were stitching scars.

            If Shawn had to guess, he would say that the creature in front of him had been sown together using different corpses. The sheer number of people that had to have been used on this one body sent chills through Shawn’s soul.

            “Magnificent, isn’t it?” The man’s voice asked with pride. “If only they could have seen their potential. Though, I guess that’s the whole point of tonight, isn’t it?”

            The man laughed darkly. A spark crackled briefly on the elevator’s floor and the restraints holding the creature in place snapped off.

            “Identify.” Shawn struggled to keep his voice level as he uttered his command.

            Abomination. An amalgamation of human corpses.

            The abomination’s eyes sprang open. The soft blue glow locked onto Anisha, and the creature screamed. The sound was haunting, eerie. The sound was a chorus of dead men crying for the relief of death that had been stolen from them.

            “Care-”

            Shawn’s warning came too late as the abomination leapt forward. Anisha brought both hands up against the flat of her blade to block the wild attack. The knight cried out in pain as the force of the blow took her off her feet. Shawn and Kaylish dove to the side as their companion’s body was sent crashing against the wall behind them. Shawn cursed but knew he wouldn’t have a chance to check on her until the abomination was dealt with.

            “Kaylish, eyes!” Shawn barked out as he aimed his own rifle at the creature’s head.

            His first round landed just to the left of the abomination’s face. Though the bullet took off a fair bit of skin, it altered its course as if it had struck angled armor. Kaylish’s own shot was much closer to its mark, burying itself an inch away from the right eye. If this were a normal person, Kaylish’s shot would have dropped them for sure. Wise to their strategy now, the abomination lifted one hulking arm to protect its eyes. Shawn continued to fire his weapon as his mind scrambled.

            We’ve hit its head multiple times, but it hasn’t gone down like the others. Shawn’s shaky hands drew out a fresh clip and slid it into his empty weapon. Maybe it doesn’t matter if the brain is destroyed?  In that case, what else?

            The abomination roared in frustration and charged in Kaylish’s direction. The brute swung its free arm like a club. The broad sweeping attack caught the edge of Kaylish’s thigh as she attempted to duck out of the way. The red-haired girl screamed as she was sent flying across the room. The abomination lifted its arm away from its eyes and roared in triumph. The motion brought its head back into Shawn’s view.

            The nape of its neck.

            Without pausing to consider how reckless it was, Shawn darted forward and lept on the creature’s back. The abomination reacted immediately. Its arms flailed back in an attempt to grab Shawn. It took all of his strength to hold on as the abomination shook him all over the place. Shawn’s rifle clattered to the cement floor below, though, Shawn wasn’t considering trying to use it at such an awkward angle. Instead, Shawn pulled the combat knife free from his belt and stabbed the creature’s neck.

            If I can sever the spinal cord…

            Shawn felt a moment of confusion as his body felt oddly light. Too late, he realized the abomination had jumped backwards and was halfway through slamming Shawn into the ground. The impact never came, however, as the abomination’s fall was stopped halfway down by a red and black blade.

            “Hurry!” Anisha grunted from below.

            Shawn had no idea when the knight had managed to get herself up, but he was in no position to complain. Shawn tightened his grip around the creature's throat and used the other hand to cut deeply into the creature’s neck.

            “Almost.” Shawn grunted with effort.

            A massive hand finally managed to grip the back of Shawn’s shirt and he was promptly ripped from his perch. The world tumbled for Shawn as his body was tossed across the room like a toy. The far wall proved uncompassionate to Shawn as his impact with it drove the breath from his lungs and twisted his leg at an odd angle. Fighting the encroaching darkness on his vision, Shawn forced himself up.

            Across the room, Anisha was locked in a deadly dance with the abomination. The frightening monster had both speed and power, which meant that Anisha was spending all of her effort into not getting knocked out of the fight. Shawn looked around, desperate for something he could use to help Anisha gain the upper hand. A few dozen feet away from where he knelt, Kaylish was dragging herself towards him, worry painted across her bruised features. From the way she was crawling, Shawn could tell that the blow to her thigh had been anything but light.

            “Shawn!” She called out to him. “Are you okay?”

            Shawn nodded. The motion brought something to his attention. Kaylish’s rifle lay within arm’s reach of where he was positioned. Shawn dove for the weapon, feeling relief hit his veins that he could provide long range support. As he attempted to aim the weapon, Shawn became truly aware for the first time at how woozy his head felt. The knock against the wall had done more than just injure his leg and drive the breath from his lungs. He would need some time to settle this pounding in his ears.

            “Kaylish, here!” Shawn slid the weapon across the floor to the approaching girl.

            At this point, Shawn trusted Kaylish’s skills more than his own.

            “Take out its eyes!”

            Kaylish bit her lip as she glanced between the rifle and Shawn. After a tense moment of deliberation, Kaylish grabbed the weapon and turned towards the sounds of combat. Anisha continued her backwards dodging and weaving. Just as she dropped low to avoid a high swing from the abomination’s arm, Kaylish took her shot. This time, she was right on the money. The abomination cried out as its right eye disappeared in a pink spray. It lifted one hand to touch the wound just as the second bullet removed the other eye. The abomination began to swing wildly, on all sides, as it lost its primary means of finding its enemy. Anisha expertly jumped over one of the swings and stepped around to the creature’s backside. With a fierce cry, Anisha lept up and drove her blade deep into the cut that Shawn had left on the nape of the abomination’s neck. There was one final haunting scream from the creature’s multiple vocal cords before it fell silent. With a heavy thump, its body collapsed to the floor.

            A chime sounded in Shawn’s ears.

            Raid boss defeated. Apprehend or eliminate the source of the undead incursion to finish the event.

            You’ve leveled up. Level 3. Access more information in the status menu.

            “Shawn!”

            While he was still dazed, Kaylish had closed the remaining distance between them. She set her rifle to the side and began poking his body all over.

            “Are you okay? Where does it hurt the most? Did you hit your head?”

            Shawn grimaced as Kaylish’s fingers prodded a particularly tender spot on the side of his head.

            “Sorry!” the red-haired girl placed both of her hands over her mouth. “I didn’t mean to, honest!”

            “It’s okay Kaylish. I’m fine.” Shawn still couldn’t comprehend why Kaylish was so attached to him, but he saw no reason to treat her harshly. “I just need time to rest.”

            Shawn spotted Anisha double checking the abomination’s body to make sure it was dead before she approached the pair on the ground.

            “It’s over.” She announced.

            Shawn shook his head. “Not yet. Not till we get the guy who was talking to us over the intercom.”

            Shawn attempted to lift himself off the ground only to fall immediately back down.

            “Careful!” Kaylish reprimanded him. “You just said you need time to rest.”

            “She’s right Shawn. Neither of you are in any condition to fight.” Anisha said, begrudgingly. “I’ll go arrest this necromancer guy and return. You two should stay put.”

            Shawn glanced down at her dented plate armor and how she was slightly favoring her left arm.

            “You’re not exactly at peak health either.” He pointed out.

            Anisha shrugged. “No, but I’m still able to fight. Wait here. I’ll be back.”

            Shawn couldn’t come up with a counter argument fast enough to stop the armored knight from prying open the inner door and forcing her way inside. Shawn pulled himself up to the nearby wall and leaned against it.

            “How long have you known her?” Kaylish asked in a reserved tone, nodding towards the door Anisha had disappeared into as she scooted up to the wall next to him.

            “Only a few days.” Shawn responded with a heavy sigh.

            “Oh.” Kaylish perked up. “So, she doesn’t know you very well.”

            “And you do?” Shawn asked with a lifted eyebrow.

            “Well, no.” Kaylish hugged her good leg up to her chest and blushed. “But I plan to.”

            She smiled and tucked her face away, embarrassed at her own admission. Shawn felt his own face burn but still couldn’t understand this young woman, nor her intentions.

            “Why though?” Shawn decided to be direct. “I mean we only just met tonight. We pretty much only know each other’s names.”

            Kaylish lifted her shoulders and let them drop. “I suppose it's because of who you are.”

            “That makes no sense.” Shawn let out a single laugh. “You just admitted that you don’t know me.”

            “I admitted that I don’t know you very well, if at all. That doesn’t mean I don’t know who you are.” Kaylish smiled brightly.

            Shawn frowned. “Does this have something to do with me being from another world?”

            Kaylish’s eyes widened. “You’re from another world?”

            “Well… yeah. I guess I assumed you already knew or something.”

            Kaylish shook her head. “I didn’t, but it makes sense. People from this world aren’t like you.”

            “What do you mean?” Shawn asked.

            Kaylish laughed and tilted her head forward onto her knee as she gazed at him.

            “You really don’t know how brightly you shine, do you?” 

            Shawn shook his head once more. “I really wish you would explain what you mean when you say things like that.”

            Kaylish laughed but this time it carried a distinct sadness to it. Her eyes fell away from Shawn.

            “Maybe I’ll tell you one day. I’m not ready to talk about it just yet.”

            Shawn wanted to press further, but the deep and genuine sadness in Kaylish’s voice and eyes convinced him not to. The pair fell silent as they wandered through their own thoughts. A chime interrupted Shawn’s.

            The first hidden requirements for, “Unwavering Loyalty, What’s Done is Done” are complete. A notification will be sent when the next part of the quest is available for review.

            Hidden requirements? Shawn gaffed.

            He had just assumed it was a location or time-based requirement for when he would be told how to proceed with the quest. If all of the requirements were hidden, how was he supposed to complete the quest?

            All I did was talk to her. Shawn glanced at Kaylish from the corner of his eye. Is… is that all it’s going to take?

            “So.” Shawn cleared his throat, getting the red-haired girl’s attention. “You wanted to get to know me?”

            Kaylish smiled and nodded shyly.

            Shawn smirked and threw his hands open. “Ask away.”

            “Where are you from?” She asked simply.

            “A world called Earth.” Shawn responded.

            “Is it anything like here?”

            “A little. Though, there are a lot of differences…”

            Shawn continued to talk and Kaylish continued to listen. She only interjected to ask further questions or to clarify something. Other than that, Kaylish listened with rapt attention. For the first time since they really met, Shawn relaxed. He mostly talked about his previous life. His family. His father being a firefighter. How he spent his time. Shawn had to admit it was a relaxing change of pace to just sit and talk. If he could ignore the massive zombified corpse in the center of the room, Shawn could almost pretend that he was a normal teenager again.