by Max Jager
"Everyone get back." Jackson called out as he moved to the door to attack the intruders. But as he moved towards the front stairwell, the door to the back stairwell was smashed open and two goblins rushed in. With a quick glance down the stairs he spotted at least five goblins, two were rushing up the stairs towards them, and the other three were at the bottom of the stairs waiting for the stairs to clear.
"There's two in the back, trust us with those we can handle them." Chloe called out as her and Jake stepped up. Snipes also stepped up to help but was pushed back by Jake.
"Snipes, you can help but only if you promise to follow my lead. Do not do anything and do not go near them until I say so." Jake stated. "Promise?"
Snipes hesitated, but relented. "Promise." He sighed.
Jackson thought through the situation, then nodded. He couldn't cover both sides at once, so he trusted them to handle the two in the back. He grabbed the TV and threw it down the stairs at the goblins. Pushing them back to the bottom of the stairwell. Then he jumped down the stairs after them to ensure that the bigger group didn't get upstairs to the others.
Carley quickly assessed the situation then rushed down the stairs after Jackson.
Sarah and Charles lead the march through the busted front door of the abandoned mall. The group cautiously walked towards the main, rectangle-shaped area in the center of the building. The stench as they walked in was horrible, there was rotten meat and garbage thrown in piles around the mall, even a few bodies of long since deceased goblins just thrown aimlessly into the piles. Everyone began coughing and gagging. They quickly covered their noses.
"Oh God it smells horrible in here! You didn't warn us about the stench!" Brooke complained.
"Yeah." Sarah grimaced a little "That's how you know it's a goblin nest. First time exploring one myself. He told us to look for a really smelly place." She took a deep breath. "I underestimated just how bad it could smell."
"Dealing with this is harder than facing the goblins themselves." Elliott complained. "It smells HORRIBLE!"
Matthew, Damion, George, and Charles seemed to be less bothered by the stench then everyone else, but they all still kept their noses pinched.
"Who is this 'he' you spoke of Sarah?" Fate asked.
"Mendelen. He's one of the four alpha testers I told you about." Sarah answered. "I'll explain it to the rest of you later." She added to the others as she walked up to a sleeping goblin. She hesitated and took a deep breath, then reluctantly stabbed her spear down into its head.
"You okay Sarah?" Fate asked.
"Yeah. I just really don't like killing them when they aren't attacking." Sarah replied.
"Why not just talk to them?" Charles asked. "Your signet works on them too right?"
"It does, but they can't really be reasoned with. I've tried before." Sarah sighed "Most creatures are passive by nature, and just want to survive. These things are aggressive by nature, and just want to pursue selfish goals."
"So what's the plan?" George interrupted.
"Well, I expected all the goblins to rush us when we walked in. They didn't." Sarah shrugged. "So that screwed up my 'wipe out all the goblins then split up and loot' plan."
"If you don't mind, I can take charge from here. I know the group better." George offered.
"Sure." Sarah said as she took a step back.
"Alright, game plan. We tackle the mall one floor at a time, we split up and go one by one into the stores, loot them, and bring the loot to the center of this big open area. If you see goblins, call for help and retreat to the big open area. If you hear someone call for help, go assist immediately. Once you finish looting a store put something unique in front of the entrance to mark it." George instructed.
"Are you insane?!" Fate looked up at George. "We can't split up like that, it's too dangerous. Especially with a killer within our ranks."
"Alright, fine. We'll travel in pairs then, same plan though. Once all the stores on one floor are looted we move up to the next." George replied, then he started listing off pairs and pointing them to a store to scavenge. "Brooke, Elliott, and Damion go to that store. Fate and Matthew, that one. Sarah and Charles, hit that store."
Everyone ran off to the store they were assigned, although many left with a bit of hesitation. That left Sophia and George as the only ones without a group.
"So, which one are we looting?" Sophia asked.
"We're not, I have something else in mind for you. Come." George answered as he walked towards the broken escalators.
Sophia hesitated and didn't move. "Um, what?"
"Come on, I'll explain everything on the way. We need to get into position before things go bad, if we don't hurry people could get hurt." George replied as he grabbed her wrist and tried to gently tug her with him. Although, being the huge guy he was he nearly pulled her off her feet.
Once she regained her footing Sophia quickly pulled her hand out of his grasp. She didn't want to be the reason someone else got hurt, so she reluctantly began to follow him. The two of them separated from the group and headed up to the second floor.
"I really don't like this." Sophia insisted.
"Don't worry, you're fine. I trust that you're skilled enough to handle yourself, and I'm here to back you up if things go wrong. You got the bow and arrows, so you're better off up here where you can safely shoot down at any goblins we find."
"I still don't like this idea. I don't like being separated from the others. They can't get to me if something goes wrong." Sophia stated, but as they reached the second floor she stood by the railing and readied her bow, watching the floor below. The mall was rectangle-shaped, with walkways and stores all around the edges, but a huge gap in the middle that allowed a clear view of the floor below.
"Trust me Sophia, you're a survivor, I can see it. There's a few areas you fall short in, but overall you have what it takes to fight and survive. You can handle this, you'll be fine." George reassured her.
"Where will you be while I'm doing this?" Sophia questioned.
"Looting the shops behind you by myself. I'm not afraid of this killer, I'm hoping he shows up so I can put an end to this." George stated. He hesitated for a moment, contemplating something. It looked like he was going to say something, but he stopped. He turned and walked into the nearby shop, offering a brief "Good luck" as he left.
Sophia kept watch on the floor below, occasionally glancing back into the store behind her to ensure nobody was sneaking up on her. She watched everyone move from one shop to the next, but George never left the one he went into. Each time she glanced back into the small shop she didn't see him in there either. That was, until she finally caught a glimpse of him.
She spotted him hiding behind a clothing rack, he was mostly concealed behind the rack but she had caught a brief glimpse of his blue hair and his eye peering out from behind the rack. He was watching her, it was unnerving. She kept glancing back at him, trying to figure out what he was doing. Until suddenly she heard Fate shout out.
"Goblin!" Fate called out as her and Matthew ran out of the store they were in. A goblin rushed out of the store after them, but it didn't move to attack, it kept its distance. Once it was out into the big rectangular room it took in a deep breath and began screaming as loud as it could.
Sarah and Charles rushed out of the shop they were in. "What is it saying Sarah?"
"Someone stop her! She's telling the others we are here." Sarah shouted to the others.
"She?" Elliott questioned as he and Brooke rushed out of their shop to assist with the goblin.
"They are living creatures like the rest of us. I refuse to just call them it." Sarah replied. She watched as an arrow flew down from the second floor and struck the goblin down. She glanced up, wondering why Sophia was up there instead of down here with the others. Before she could ask the goblins began pouring out of one of the big stores on the other side of the mall. Twenty three of them in total.
George was nowhere to be seen, so Fate immediately took c
harge. "Spread out, but stay in your groups." She instructed. Everyone spread out but stuck with their partner as the goblins rushed in. Sarah and Charles moved to the front line, Fate and Matthew stood a short distance behind and to the side of them. Brooke and Elliott stood a little further back and off to the other side of Sarah and Charles.
Two of the goblins were shot down by Sophia before they could get near everyone else. As the goblins closed in to attack, Charles made the first move. He lunged forwards and swung his mace for the head of the first goblin. The goblin jumped backwards to evade the blow, but as it jumped back sarah jabbed her spear into the creature's head.
A second goblin moved in from the side to strike at Sarah, but Charles threw his mace at it. Catching the goblin off guard, it struck the goblin in the face and knocked it to the ground. A third goblin moved in to attack Charles from the side, but Charles fluidly rolled forwards and out of the way. He grabbed his mace after his roll, and Sarah stabbed her spear into the chest of the third goblin while it was distracted.
The bulk of the goblins closed in and began to spread out to attack all three groups of humans. Three ran after Brooke and Elliott. Brooke moved up front to face them head-on while Elliott moved around the side. It was the bait and switch strategy that had become a staple in their lives.
As the first goblin rushed in at Brooke, Elliott swept in from the side and slammed his pipe into its ribs. The goblin was knocked to the ground, but before they could finish it off a second goblin lunged at Elliott. Elliott focused on evading, and quickly backed up while Brooke moved forward to smash her bat into the creature's head, knocking it to the ground. She took a step towards it only to spot the third goblin, carrying a plank of wood in one hand and jumping at her from the side.
Brooke didn't have time to move or react, she noticed it too late. But right before the goblin's plank struck her Elliott grabbed her arm and yanked her out of the way. They were both thrown off balance by Elliott's move, but Brooke was saved from being struck by the goblin.
As they stumbled and tried to regain their footing the goblin immediately shifted into a backhanded swing at them. Brooke thought quick and fell on purpose, grabbing Elliott and pulling him down with her. They both narrowly avoided being struck again, but the goblin wasn't giving up. They hit the floor and the goblin immediately moved in, raising its plank over its head to slam it down on them.
Elliott threw his pipe, striking the goblin in the face. The goblin let out a screech of pain and stumbled backwards. Brooke, seizing the moment, flipped back onto her feet and struck the goblin in the face again with her bat, knocking it to the ground. But the other two goblins had gotten up, Brooke ducked just in time for the first goblin to narrowly miss a swing aimed for her head.
The second goblin ran for Elliott, who hadn't gotten back onto his feet quite as quickly as his sister. The goblin rushed in and reached out, trying to grab Elliott, who quickly rolled out of its reach. Elliott turned around to try and help Brooke, but before he could do anything an arrow flew down and struck the goblin in the chest. The goblin screamed out and fell to the ground, clutching its chest. The other two goblins that were fighting Brooke and Elliott stopped and looked at the fallen goblin with expressions of both shock and concern.
Elliott took advantage of their moment of shock to grab his pipe and smash one of them in the back of the head. The goblin was knocked to the ground, and wasn't moving anymore.
The last of the three goblins that had been fighting Brooke and Elliott watched and looked panicked. It threw it's club at Elliott, forcing him to drop to the ground to get out of the way. The club was thrown with such force that it fractured into several small pieces upon impact with the wall behind him. While Elliott was down the goblin rushed over and grabbed the unconscious goblin in one arm. It then rushed over and grabbed the shot goblin in the other arm and ran away, saying something over and over in a panicked-sounding tone.
Brooke and Elliott let it run away and turned to see how the others were doing. The others were facing more goblins then they had and were struggling, but everyone seemed to be fine. Another arrow flew down onto the battlefield, piercing a goblin that was fighting with Fate. Then, suddenly, Sophia screamed.
Brooke and Elliott quickly looked up to the second floor to see what was wrong, only to see Sophia running while four goblins ran after her. As the goblins passed by the store she had been standing near George burst out from hiding and slammed his shoulder into one of the goblins, pushing it over the barrier and knocking it down to the first floor. The next goblin in line took a jab at George's face while the other two ran around George to pursue Sophia.
George ducked under the goblin's fist and shifted his grip to a reverse grip halfway down the bat, then slammed his bat up into the goblin's jaw. The goblin shouted out in pain and stumbled back. George took the opportunity to step closer and shove the goblin off the ledge, throwing it down to the first floor.
By now, Sophia and the other goblins had run into one of the stores and were out of sight. George had caught a brief glimpse of which store they ran into, and he ran after them.
"We need to get up there and help her!" Elliott shouted. He ran for the broken escalator with Brooke just a few steps behind. One of the goblins that was fighting the others tried to block them, it ran out in front of Elliott and took a swing at him as he ran past. But Elliott ducked under the swing, and once the swing missed Brooke jumped over Elliott and tackled the goblin.
Brooke jumped off the goblin immediately after they hit the ground, she knew what would happen if it grabbed her. As soon as she jumped off Elliott slammed his pipe down onto the goblin's head, twice, killing it. The two of them rushed up to the second floor and ran into the big store Sophia had run into. But as they walked in they couldn't find Sophia, George, or the goblins. This was one of the big stores on the end of the mall, there were stairs to the upper and lower floors within the store. They paused, trying to figure out which way she went. hi
There was a crashing sound from above, so both Brooke and Elliott ran upstairs to continue their search and rescue mission. But they couldn't find anything.
"Sophia!" Elliott called out. No answer.
The two of them continued to search the third and fourth floors, both of which were clear of goblins now that the whole tribe had run downstairs to fight. But neither Sophia or George could be found.
Eventually there was nowhere left to search so they walked back downstairs. The fight was over now, Fate and Matthew were both hurt but everyone was alive.
Fate's leg was injured, but not broken. She was using her shovel as a crutch. Matthew had suffered a fractured arm.
"You find them?" Fate asked.
"No, we can't find them or the goblins chasing them." Brooke answered.
George walked out of one of the larger stores on the opposite side of the mall, on the first floor. "Lost track of her and the goblins." He grumbled then cussed several times. He kicked a large piece of debris as he walked past it.
Everyone looked over at him, several people gave him a look of distrust. But nobody said anything.
"I know, I know." George grumbled. "I'll sit here where someone can see me at all times." He sat down in the middle of the mall floor.
"Charles?" Sarah asked.
"Got it." Charles answered. He walked over to George and stood beside him, watching him.
"Everyone stay in your pairs and search the stores. Grab any valuables the goblins are hoarding in here. Keep an eye out for the missing woman while you're searching. I will search my stores on my own.
"You sure you feel safe doing that?" Fate asked.
"I'm fine. I can handle myself." Sarah insisted.
"There's one goblin still running around somewhere. I only killed one of her pursuers." George warned.
Everyone heard him, but nobody responded to him.
Everyone paired up again and each pair went off to search a different store. Over the next few hours they went through the stores on the
first two floors, everyone gathered any valuables they could find. Fate, Brooke, and Matthew all grabbed a backpack to carry with them. George followed the group and sat outside the shops on each floor.
As the group moved up to the third floor Sarah and Charles stopped them. "It is getting late, the hunting parties will be returning soon. We need to go." Charles stated. "We got enough stuff, let's not risk any lives."
"What about Sophia? We haven't found her." George spoke up. "If you're all going to leave at least let me stay behind to find her."
"We can't just let you out of our sight." Fate stated. "I want to find her too, so what can we do." She asked Sarah.
Sarah hesitated, she wanted to help.
"We need to go. We will be in danger if we stay." Charles stated.