Chapter 60: Burning Lava

Meanwhile, Adam still couldn't move and was desperate. Miguel's distraction only served for a moment, but now all the windwalkers were dead and the mass of flesh was closing in.

Just when he thought he would end up dying there, the overhead door of the vehicle burst open and Zack appeared, and without asking any questions, violently dragged him out of the vehicle.

The man slung him over his shoulder and ran with all his might. They soon entered the car park, but the survivors standing there panicked as they watched a mass of flesh advancing towards them.

"Stand still! Stay calm."

Tracel's voice sounded like thunder. One of his abilities allowed him to issue commands with his voice. Everyone calmed down and stayed in place, though Tracel knew it wouldn't last long. Luckily, Zack soon arrived at Tracel's side with Adam loaded on his back.

Tarin, who had been at Tracel's side from the beginning, used that moment to launch a full-power blizzard at the mass of flesh, stopping its advance for a precious moment.

"The activation of that trap had better be quick or we're dead."

"Give me... hand…"

Adam, already sitting on the ground, was beginning to regain mobility in his body, but he could barely raise his hand and speak. Tracel understood immediately and grabbed it.

"Everyone... Hold on."

All the survivors saw each other's faces. The effect of Tracel's voice was about to wear off, so many began to tremble with fear.

"Quickly!" Tracel shouted. They all held hands moments later and Adam was able to activate the ritual, which did not depend on whether he could move his body or not.

An absurd amount of energy coursed through his body in an instant and formed a whirlpool that was somewhere near his stomach. As if swallowed by a hole, the energy disappeared from his body and was poured directly into the trap, through the ethereal connection it had with Adam.

The ritual shaped the energy into a huge lava pit that immediately affected the plumbing in the area. Adam triggered the trap.

In the car park, the survivors panicked and ran towards the superblock. The monstrosity was already there and was raising pillars of flesh that Zack was trying to cut through with the help of his group, Tarin and Ivy.

The activation of the trap felt like an earthquake. The pillars of earth supporting the trap collapsed. Most of the square and part of the street abruptly fell a few feet and broke into pieces. The monstrosity was taken by surprise and tried to hold on to the tree, but soon fell into the burning lava.

From the roof of the building just across the square, Miguel carried Leonard, who had been hit in the eye, on his shoulders. The scene of the monstrosity sinking into the lava as he tried to save himself took his breath away. The mass of amorphous flesh stretched out, trying to find a foothold, while the huge eye struck its surroundings like a whip. It managed, for a moment, to wrap itself around a lamppost, but the sheer weight of its main body caused the pole to break within seconds. There was nothing the thing could do to avoid ending up in the lava pit.

Behind it, the mass of flesh that had reached the building turned a black colour and began to weaken as the main body lost connection with its more distant parts. Before dying, the monstrosity emitted a shriek that could be heard for miles around.

Michael was almost knocked off balance by the unexpected scream, but he soon recovered and surveyed what was left of the plaza. The lava lake had completely consumed the monstrosity and was now beginning to cool. All the flesh that wasn't caught in it decomposed in a second and turned to ash. At last, he could breathe a sigh of relief and lay down on the roof. They had made it. No. Adam had done it.

In the car park, Tracel stared at the remains of the monster while trying not to tremble with fear. He'd come close, again. He hoped it wouldn't become a habit, but he had a bad feeling that things would only get harder from here. He glanced at the survivors behind him, some watching him warily. He would rather not have shown his skill, but he had no choice.

Adam, meanwhile, closed his eyes and stayed on the ground where he was. The adrenaline had not yet left his system, so he could still feel his heart pounding. Zack was quick to pick him up and tap him with his shoulder a couple of times.

"That thing was a lot worse than we thought, but you still made it, I'm really surprised."

Adam just smiled and said nothing. He still couldn't believe he was alive. Zack, meanwhile, thought he had underestimated Adam, his words were totally sincere. He couldn't believe how powerful the monstrosity really was.

Adam slowly regained his body's mobility, at which point Miguel and Leonard arrived as well. When everyone heard that they had managed to see the monstrosity die, they approached them for more details.

From the superblock Carlos watched the scene. In part he was relieved, he was glad that Adam had survived, but at the same time, he was scared. He had seen the monstrosity from here and had to summon all his courage not to run away, especially with Alfred down there. Luckily, Adam's plan worked, but it was too close.

Carlos sighed and then looked at Tracel, already suspecting that he shared the same class as him. Seeing the skills in use had certainly been useful, besides, he was sure the survivors wouldn't take it well if someone had made them obey orders against their will like that. At that moment, a curious idea occurred to him. Carlos went back to his house, thinking of a way to execute it.

Everyone gathered in the car park, relieved that it was all over, but at that moment Adam received some bad news.

[The territory of the Nuevo Sol Haven has been invaded and, due to a lack of defenders, was conquered by a neighbouring refuge of another race].

Adam just sighed, exhausted, it was always one thing after another, but he was getting used to it. The message hadn't said so, but Adam could sense which territories were parts of the refuge. It was an ability he had gained since becoming the leader, but he had never paid much attention to it, as it was something that worked almost unconsciously. Now he felt an emptiness, as if something was missing, so he turned his gaze to block 3, which the Breeder had apparently conquered.

"Miguel!"

Miguel turned to look at Adam and everyone else fell silent at his tone.

"I just got a message from the System. The Breeder's conquered Block 3. It's no longer part of our territory."

"Everyone out of the car park! Back to your apartments now!"

Some survivors, who had stayed to watch the scene, retreated back to their homes.

Adam got up with some difficulty and made his way to the superblock, where they all gathered in the flat that Miguel had chosen.

"What else do you know, Adam?" said Miguel.

"Not much, just that we lost the territory."

"What do we do then?" asked Zack.

Adam closed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"Nothing."

"What?"

"It's not a good idea to go out and fight for territory that's empty anyway. Besides, I need a good rest. At least for the rest of the day and all night."

"So now you're a coward like Carlos?" continued Zack.

"You're welcome to go out with your team and fight all you want, but if you haven't noticed, there are plenty of people who aren't fit to fight anymore."

Zack stared at Adam after listening to him. Then he just smiled.

"Well, at least you don't look like you're chickening out of facing that thing. I'll take it upon myself to guard the entrance to the housing development and kill any zombies that come near. But before that I want to discuss something."

"What's that?"

"The pay, of course. How much are you willing to pay for my services?"

Adam frowned.

"I suppose you can keep everything you get for yourself."

Zack smiled.

"Well, I'm already doing that anyway. The problem is, that's not your payment, that's just what we're entitled to. You'll have to offer more if you want me to stick around."