The rooms were on the lower levels, below the assembly hall. When the four had arrived, they were able to choose roommates. Naturally, they had stuck together.

Solera entered the room, tossing everything he could into his bag and retrieving the Bloodsand sword from under his bed. Chip handed Guinness a club and Pinot a gauntlet; she wanted to go to her room as well, but Chip vetoed that request.

“The only exits are on the upper levels.” Chip spoke as they walked back up the stairs. “Pray they haven’t made it that far.”

Pinot huffed as they climbed up another flight of stairs, but they were otherwise quiet. Around the corner was a corridor that led to the staircase that would take them back to the assembly hall. There, they would take another side corridor up to the top of the trunk, where they would find a placeto tie a rope down to ground level without anyone noticing and escape.

Solera wasn’t sure where Chip had gotten a forty meter rope, but he had one in his bag.

They rounded the corner, coming face to face with four black-armored figures with wings sprouting from their backs.

Immediately, a dark green medallion slammed into the chest of the man in front. The Crumble disc dissolved into liquid that melted straight through his armor. The man fell down, screaming. Chip drew his sword, his expression ugly.

At the same time, an Airborne with long sideburns pointed his gauntlet straight at Qiao. The gauntlet had three grooves above the wrists, each holding a silver dart. Qiao lifted his sword up to block, but it was too late. The darts thudded into his forehead and cheeks, one of them embedding itself right below his eye. He died instantly.

Seeing this, Guinness howled. He barreled forward and swung his club wildly at the channeler. At the same time, Solera slashed out at a female channeler, forcing her to use the bayonet attached to her gauntlet to block his strike. A lightning bolt discharged from her gauntleted palm into the wall, sending out a loud thunderclap that made Solera’s ears ring.

Pinot backed away, trembling. She held up her gauntlet and channeled out a measly flamestream at a muscular Airborne wielding a sword. Completely unfazed, the swordsman swung down at Chip. Loud sounds of clashing metal rang out as Chip blocked the swordsman’s lightning fast blows.

Solera’s shoulder slammed into the woman, sending her tumbling into the floor. She was a channeler, and was much weaker than Solera physically. Since Solera had reacted first and was able to take the offensive, she was put in a position she could not recover from.

The woman lifted an arm up from the floor, shooting out a thick flamestream at Solera. As the torrent of flames doused him with fire, his sword stabbed straight into her brain. The flames instantly stopped, but he was still severely burned. If not for the adrenaline pumping through his veins, Solera would be writhing on the ground in agony.

The Airborne fighting Guinness had been ducking and blocking in the few seconds it took for Solera to kill the woman, but he had finally recovered. A small lightning bolt shot into Guinness. His swing was interrupted and he fell on the ground, twitching uncontrollably. The Airborne stood over him, pointing the gauntlet at Guinness’s head.

“AHHHHH!” Solera threw his sword at the Airborne, forcing him to dodge aside. The sword bounced off the wall, unable to even scratch the Siehnti corridor. As the man whirled back, Solera’s body slammed into him with immense force.

Solera’s tackle sent them both onto the floor, next to the dissolving corpse of the man Chip had killed. Half of him had turned into a steaming puddle of goo. Fat sloughed off the blackened bones, which were crumbling apart. Despite its utter gruesomeness, Solera had no time to process the sight; one of his hands was forcing the man’s gauntleted arm to the ground, while the other one was raking across the man’s face.

Deep red lines appeared all over the man’s head as Solera clawed. The man’s free hand pounded Solera’s back, breaking a rib with every punch. Solera moved his leg to pin down the gauntlet hand, gritting his teeth as he endured another strike. His left hand moved to the man’s neck, holding it down as his right fist smashed into the man’s cranium.

A cracking sound rang out. The man’s face caved in, and he instantly stopped moving. Solera withdrew his fist, his face pale. His punch had fractured the bones in his fingers.

The man’s eyes had burst out of their sockets. Blood and brain matter trickled everywhere. Seeing this, Solera vomited all over the corpse, adding his half-digested breakfast to the mix.

Solera heard another roar, and looked up. Guinness was swinging at the last man, who easily dodged aside. The swordsman savagely kicked Guinness, sending him tumbling onto the floor next to Solera. Pinot moved behind Solera, trembling with fear.

Solera’s eyes scanned the corridor. Chip’s sword lay on the side, but he himself was nowhere to be seen.

He had run away, leaving them to die.

Solera gasped, coughing out some blood as the swordsman calmly walked forward. He was about out of options; he had broken several ribs as well as his right hand, and burns covered his entire body. Was he going to die here?

He felt two small hands on his back pushing him forward.

“No!” Pinot shrieked. “Don’t kill me, don’t kill me.”

She was sobbing and sniffling. “Kill him instead, don’t kill me, please…”

Hearing this, Solera’s blood ran cold. Pinot was holding him in place, making him unable to dodge the coming strike!

“Protect me, Solera. Don’t let him kill me…” Pinot moaned.

The man brandished his sword, a murderous look on his face. Solera stared death in the face, unwillingness in his eyes.

As the sword stabbed at him, Solera twisted around. It went straight past him and into Pinot’s chest. Her tear-stained eyes widened, and a rattling sound came out of her throat. Blood sprayed out of her mouth onto Solera’s arms and pants.

Solera stared blankly at her face as she went limp. Her dying expression was not adorable, but rather grotesque, filled with pain, terror, and shock.

Solera was shaken back to his sense as the man began to pull his sword out. Yelling, he grabbed Pinot by the shoulders and stumbled towards the man. Disgusting squishing sounds were emitted from Pinot’s body as Solera dragged her body all the way to the hilt of the man’s sword.

Guinness had gotten back up, and his fist smashed straight into the man’s chest, causing him to drop the sword as he fell. Solera immediately wrenched the sword out of Pinot and stabbed down at the man, again and again and again. Yet he was using his off hand, so every time the man was able to twist around and deflect the blow with his armor.

Guinness’s fist went straight into the man’s face, knocking him out cold. Solera pushed Guinness back and chopped down with the sword, beheading the final Airborne.