Night fell over the tower, and darkness filled everything around, creating an illusion of safety. Jack's group was exhausted and in a state of drowsy relaxation. Lina and Kyle were already curled up by the wall, trying to get some rest after the intense day. Brian, as always, stayed apart, his cold expression and distant gaze showing he was lost in his own thoughts.
Jack kept watch, listening to every rustle. The nighttime sounds had become a part of their lives—the rustling of the forest, distant howls of creatures, footsteps echoing beyond the tower walls. Everything seemed normal, but something was bothering him. He felt a slight tension in the air, like before a storm.
"Jack," Lina whispered, sitting down next to him. "Those people... there's something off about them."
Her face was pale, and her voice was trembling. She nodded toward the newcomers, who sat quietly in the corner, like puppets, mechanically turning their heads as if on command.
"Maybe it's just exhaustion? We're all at our limit here," Jack tried to reassure her, though he didn't believe his own words.
"I don't know. I have a bad feeling," Lina looked away, covering her face with her hands in weariness. "I want this to be over."
Jack sighed. He also wanted it to end. But each time it seemed the situation might stabilize, the world threw them a new blow.
"Go and get some rest," Jack said, trying to keep his voice calm. "I'll stay on watch."
Lina nodded, not arguing, and returned to her spot. Jack kept an eye on the newcomers, but fatigue was getting to him. His eyelids grew heavy, his thoughts muddled, and his body resisted the urge to sleep.
At some point, Jack heard strange noises coming from outside the tower. They were barely discernible, as if someone was slowly approaching the gates, but he couldn't tell exactly where the sound was coming from. His mind clouded, and soon he started to drift off, unaware that this wasn't ordinary fatigue—something was affecting him.
Meanwhile, Brian, sitting in the shadows, kept glancing at the floor near the wall. There, among a pile of rubble and dust, was a hidden hatch leading to the basement, which he had discovered the day before but decided not to mention to the others.
The tower fell silent. Jack was nearly asleep at his post, and no one suspected that an attack was being prepared against them.
The darkness suddenly came alive. At first, everything happened almost silently—Thomas and his people, sitting nearby, rose as if on command. Their movements were sharp and mechanical, their gazes empty and lifeless. They moved toward the sleeping group like predators preparing to attack.
Kyle was the first to sense something was wrong and opened his eyes. He saw Thomas sneaking up on him with a knife in hand and tried to get up, but it was too late. The cold blade sank into his side, and Kyle let out a muffled groan.
"Damn!" he gasped, falling to his knees.
Jack jolted awake and leaped to his feet. His mind was still foggy, but reality quickly crashed in. He saw Thomas and the others already attacking his friends.
"We're under attack!" Jack shouted, rushing to Kyle.
Lina awoke to his shout and immediately realized something terrible was happening. Her heart pounded as one of the newcomers lunged at her with a dagger. She barely managed to dodge, but the blow struck her shoulder. The pain paralyzed her for a moment, and she screamed.
"They're trying to open the gates!" Brian shouted, noticing that two of the newcomers were heading for the massive wooden doors of the tower, their last line of defense against outside threats.
The monster was already nearby—they could hear its growls beyond the walls, and the gates began to shake from its blows. The creature sensed the trap was about to spring.
"To the basement!" Brian suddenly shouted. He rushed to one of the tower's corners, where the hidden hatch lay. "We need to go down!"
"What?" Jack yelled, barely fending off one of the attackers. "What basement?!"
"It's our only chance!" Brian had already opened the hatch and pointed to the dark passage below.
Jack glanced at Lina and Kyle. Kyle was breathing heavily, his wound bleeding, but he was still conscious. Lina, clutching her shoulder, struggled to hold back tears.
"We have to go!" Brian shouted, dragging Kyle toward the hatch. "Or we're all dead!"
Lina, swaying, ran to the hatch and helped Kyle down. Jack stayed behind, holding off the newcomers to give his friends time to escape.
One of them, with a wild look in his eyes, tried to stab Jack with a dagger, but Jack dodged, grabbed his arm, and shoved him back. The only thought on his face was: something was controlling these people, and that "something" was outside.
The monster struck the gates again, and they creaked as if about to break. Jack quickly followed the others down into the basement, and Brian slammed the hatch shut behind them, leaving the tower and the beast outside.
Darkness swallowed them as soon as they closed the hatch. The basement was cold and damp, and the walls seemed to emit a strange sense of staleness and age. The air was thick with the smell of stone and mold. Jack quickly looked around: a narrow corridor led deeper into the tower, fading into darkness.
Lina, panting from pain and fear, leaned against the wall, her wound bleeding. Kyle, though trying to remain steady, looked barely alive. Brian, arms crossed over his chest, leaned against the wall and watched everything with cold indifference.
"Kyle, how are you?" Jack asked, approaching him. Kyle struggled to lift his head, his face deathly pale.
"I... I'll manage," he groaned, but it was clear his condition was critical. Lina, trembling all over, sat beside him, trying to hold back tears. She was worried about Kyle, but her own wound caused her severe pain.
"Are we safe?" Lina asked quietly, her voice shaking with fear.
"Yes, for now," Brian replied with apparent indifference.
Jack looked at Brian with distrust. He still couldn't understand how Brian had known about the basement and why he'd kept it a secret until the last moment. But now wasn't the time for questions—they needed a way out of this nightmare.
Outside, the beast's roar continued. It struck the gate a few times, but each time seemed to hit an invisible barrier, hesitating to come closer to the basement. Jack wondered what about this place was so repulsive to the creature.
"Why won't it come after us?" Jack finally asked Brian.
"Because there's something ancient here," Brian replied, pointing at the walls, which were covered in strange symbols. "I found this basement yesterday. At first, I didn't understand what it was, but now it seems there's something here that even that monster fears."
Jack studied the walls. The symbols were old, deeply etched into the stone. They radiated a strange, almost sinister energy. It was clear that this basement wasn't just a storage room—there was some deep, mysterious connection between it and the world they had found themselves in.
"You knew about this and kept silent?" Jack struggled to control his anger. Brian only shrugged.
"I figured it might be useful. And see, it is. But we won't last long here if we don't find a way out."
Jack felt rage boiling within him, but now was not the time to let it out. The monster was outside, while they were in a basement that was as intimidating as it was sheltering.
The basement was dark, and every step felt heavy. Lina tried to help Kyle, but his condition worsened with each passing minute. Jack could see that he was losing a lot of blood, his chances of survival dwindling by the moment. His breathing was becoming increasingly labored.
"Don't leave us, Kyle," Lina whispered, her voice shaking as her eyes filled with tears. She held his hand tightly, trying to keep him conscious.
Kyle managed to lift his head and look at Jack. His eyes were full of pain, yet resolved.
"Jack… don't… let them…" he coughed up blood, his voice barely audible. "You… have to keep going."
Jack's heart tightened with grief. His friend, who had endured so many trials with him, was dying right before his eyes. And there was nothing he could do to save him.
"We'll find a way out of this," Jack whispered, but his words felt hollow.
Lina couldn't hold back her tears. She clung to Kyle, and he used his last bit of strength to squeeze her hand. His breathing slowed, and soon his eyes closed for the last time.
"No…" Lina whispered, wiping away tears. She held Kyle's lifeless body, unwilling to believe what had happened.
Jack stood apart, feeling something break within him. He had lost his friend. The monster was outside, but the real threat now seemed to be here, in his heart.
Suddenly, Lina coughed up blood, clutching her injured shoulder as she slumped against the wall. Jack rushed to her, seeing dark lines spreading from her wound, poison radiating from it and draining her strength.
"Jack…" her voice was faint, weakening. "I… don't want to die…"
Clenching his teeth, Jack tried to stop the bleeding, but his efforts were in vain. He realized he was losing Lina, too.
"You have to hold on," he said, but her eyes began to close. Lina took one final shallow breath, and her grip on Jack's hand loosened.
Her life faded away, and Jack was left alone with the bodies of his two friends. Outside, the monster's growls continued, but it all felt so distant now.
Brian watched all this with indifference, standing off to the side.
"It's inevitable, Jack," he said coldly. "Only the strong survive in this world. Lina and Kyle were too weak."
Jack looked at him with hatred. He wanted to say something, but the words got stuck in his throat. Instead, he simply lowered his head.
The darkness in the basement grew thicker, and a menacing silence filled the air. The monster was still outside, hesitant to descend. Jack sat among the bodies of his fallen friends, feeling empty. He knew he couldn't stay here forever.
"We can't just sit here," Brian finally said, breaking the silence. "This basement isn't a place to survive. Yes, the monster fears it, but what if it finds a way in?"
Jack raised his eyes to Brian, full of disgust, but Brian ignored it.
"There's something here," Brian continued, walking along the walls covered in symbols. "These markings… they might be connected to those ancient powers. Maybe there's something here we can use."
"Use?" Jack finally spoke, his voice hoarse. "You want to mess with something that even monsters fear?"
Brian shrugged.
"We're already playing this world's game, Jack. And you know that power is the only thing that matters."
Jack turned away. He understood that Brian was right about one thing—they couldn't just sit and wait for death. But his attitude toward the lives and deaths of their friends… it was more than Jack could bear.
"Are you just going to leave them?" Jack asked, gesturing to Lina and Kyle's bodies.
"They're dead, Jack," Brian replied, staring coldly at him. "And if you don't want to join them, you'd better keep moving forward."