Abella Sterling (Female P.O.V)

October 23, 2074

The image burned itself onto my retinas and tattooed itself into my memory. It didn't help that the train car took its time traveling down the rail.

Suddenly a metallic leg appeared past the doorway, standing atop his chest. Bit by bit, the rest of the spider's body came into view. It traipsed across his body without care as it fixed its sight on me. A jumble of knots formed deep within my stomach when another two identical spiders appeared behind it.

My eyes went wide as they suddenly leaped, flying through the air. There was no time to stop, but I still managed to move my head slightly back as they whipped past my face. Fireball89, the red-headed girl next to me, wasn't so lucky. A horrified scream ripped past her lips when they landed upon her.

She thrashed wildly in a desperate attempt to shake them off but to no avail. My fingers tightened around the pipe, itching to swing, but one wrong hit could injure her.

One strong twist flung the two spiders clinging to her left side to the ground. She whacked her pipe against the lone spider still attached to her leg while I went after the nearest one.

I wound the pipe like a baseball bat before smacking it against the spider's side. The force of the hit sent it flying a few feet away.

Unperturbed by the blow, it bounded back to us for another attack. I quickly intercepted it and bashed it non-stop with my pipe. My rage, frustration, and pure hatred of this fucked up situation fueled every hit.

I didn't let up until its broken and battered form lay still on the concrete with its legs splayed around it. Ragged breaths continuously fell from my lips as I stood over it.

My arms hung limp, aching from the strength I exerted to kill that one spider. But my determination to continue fighting for my life and my brothers kept that pipe glued to my hands. A tiny smile spread across my lips in utmost pride of the takedown.

It was a small victory compared to what lay ahead for me, but I would take it.

A spark of electricity emitted from the robot's exposed wires diminished my smile in a flash and sent me recoiling backward.

A glimpse of something black clinging to the tunnel wall in my peripheral accelerated my already rampant heart rate.

I whipped around with my pipe poised to strike, expecting another spider or worse. But it wasn't either. Instead, it was the butt of one of the handguns secured to the wall.

I glanced at Fireball89 to see one of the remaining spiders lunging at her. The other had succumbed to her blows and lay smashed to pieces on the ground.

Anxious to end this, I grabbed a gun and ran to her. I was halfway there when my feet stopped of their own accord.

I was unable to move, paralyzed as three spiders piled onto her from behind. The other joined shortly after.

I looked on in shock as tiny spikes shot out their legs, piercing her flesh. Sheer agony twisted her features as her head flung back and a blood-curdling scream ripped from her lips.

Over and over again, the spikes retracted before plunging back into her skin. My eyes watered as blood poured profusely from the holes and fell to the concrete.

The crimson rivulets spiraling down their legs sent me to my knees, struggling to catch my breath.

The light in her sapphire green eyes dimmed as her body hit the ground. Deep sorrow and remorse filled my heart, only to be shoved aside by fear. The horde of metallic bastards was much closer now. And any minute now, they would be directly in front of me.

My eyes went to her. To them, then back to her.

I couldn't save her. There was no way to stop the robots from their relentless stabbing fest. I backed up one step, then two more before finally turning around and running away.

A/N: The above image is the closest I could find to show how I imagined the tracks, but just remember there are two.

It wasn't long before a bright light appeared in the distance, growing bigger and brighter with each step. Given how the game had begun, I was a little apprehensive about what awaited on the other side.

My only consultation was that whatever it was, the two players ahead of me would experience it first.

But since there was a chance it could just be the end, I picked up my pace. The limited amount of safety chambers meant there would be losers. And I couldn't be one of them.

A loud bang echoing throughout the tunnel made me stop at once.

No doubt, a gunshot.

When others soon followed it, I wanted to turn back, but the approaching robots made me dismiss that idea.

There was no going back, only forward. Whatever it was couldn't be much worse than them. I hoped.

I took a deep breath and slipped out of the tunnel with my gun raised.

Veronica and Tinman stood in the center of the tracks shooting at the robotic rats around them. Those five cold, heartless shells were just lights and hardware. They paid no mind to their bullet-ridden frames as they kept lunging at their lower halves.

I fired mercilessly and relentlessly at the two nearest me, further damaging their weakened core. Emboldened by their flickering eyes and languish movements, I stepped closer. And closer still. My finger never eased off the trigger until I emptied the clip into their bodies. Breathing heavily, I lowered my weapon as their bodies fell to the ground, one by one, with a thud.

I tried to smile, but it probably looked more like a grimace as my eyes swept over the other metal carcasses scattered around the space. A hand wrapping around my arm cut my perusal short. Veronica led me across the tracks and to the platform.

After climbing up, we stood there gaping at the five contraptions lining the center of the platform. They were at least seven feet tall, and their sleek steel frame gleamed underneath the lights. Each was cylinder-shaped, with only a tiny single window in the door.

My heart sank upon seeing only two of them were empty. Shadowknight, QuietStorm, and Reaper already occupied the others.

All of them were in similar positions, with their eyes closed and their head resting against the cushioned inner layer of the seat holding them.

They seemed fast asleep as if the short stint had drained their energy.

It was peculiar.

Very peculiar, but I didn't spare it much thought. The fact that only two safety chambers remained took precedence in my mind.

I wanted...no, I needed to be inside one.

My finger lightly stroked the trigger, more than tempted to kill for the last chamber.

I was the last one out of the tunnel. The thought looped in my head as if to drill it into my mind and stop me from doing something stupid.

Plus, my gun was empty. But even if it weren't, that wouldn't change anything. I wouldn't let this game corrupt my morals.

"We're the last three," Tinman stated.

I glanced at the tunnel, willing someone else to appear. If not all. Even if they did, there weren't any more hatches.

I sighed. "It seems that way."

I should have been happy. My brother and I were still alive. We were one step closer to the end. Yet the other players' faces flashed through my head.

I didn't even know them, but I couldn't accept their deaths so easily.

"How are we going to decide who gets it?" Tinman asked.

I shrugged one shoulder. I didn't see a fair solution. And pretty soon, we would run out of time.

"We don't have to," Veronica shouted from the doorway of the fourth chamber while waving us over. "Come look!"

"What is it?" Tinman looked at me before we walked over.

"You need to see for yourself." Veronica's words sounded slightly muffled as she moved further inside so we could enter.

My eyes quickly passed over the three oval indentations engraved in the metal that housed seats before the unthinkable happened.

The door slid close behind me, locking us inside. Veronica rushed to the door and ran her hands across the siding to find a way to reopen it. But her frantic search came to an abrupt stop at the sound of gears churning. We looked toward the upper right corner, where the noise originated. A tiny hatch in the metal paneling cracked open, pumping a thick white smoke inside.

I covered my mouth with my arm and moved toward the nearest seat while the others did the same. My eyelids grew heavy as the smoke continued for a moment more before stopping.

Seeing J.P. and Stu approaching the platform gave me the strength to keep them open a little longer.

A gunshot rang out as J.P. hoisted himself up. A guttural bellow dredged from the deepest part of his gut burst past his lips as he crumpled over, clutching his right leg. Blood leaked through his fingers, dripping onto the floor.

"No!" My voice sounded disconnected from my body.

I headed to the door, and every step felt like I was wading through mud. When I finally reached it, it felt like ages had passed. Without a doubt an effect of the gas.

My hands blindly searched for a latch, button, or anything that would open the door. When I didn't find either, my hands dropped to my sides, and I merely stared out the window. All I could do was watch with a horrified expression on my face and pray it ended there.

J.P. kept one hand wrapped around his leg while the other shakily went for the gun beside him. Before he could get it, Stu hopped onto the platform and snatched it.

"Why?" J.P. croaked out through trembling lips.

"I'm sorry."

Gathering my remaining energy, I banged my fist on the glass. "No!" I growled, breathing so heavily that the glass fogged.

At once, Stu looked over me, lowering the gun slightly.

It wasn't too late. I could stop him from making an irreversible mistake that would forever tarnish his soul. I started to tell him there was room for more than one person, but my eyes fell closed.