Snapping out of their daze, Max and Alex ran out of the building without looking back.
"Let's get to the tall building and leave this creepy place!"
Alex nodded, his lungs burning as he ran closely behind him.
After what felt like hours of taking several twists and turns and narrowly avoiding patrolling androids, they finally arrived at the skyscraper.
Its silver walls shimmering in the daylight with plants growing around it like vines as a fruity scent filled the air. The smell was too sweet, causing Max to sneeze slightly at the unnatural air.
A familiar light caught their eyes from the top, lifting their hopes only for it to come crashing down at the sight of eight androids stationed at the entrance— four on each side, carrying guns that looked like they were from Star Wars.
The duo immediately hid behind a nearby building, staring at the machines before exchanging a glance.
Alex knelt down and took of one of his red sneakers, taking out a piece of concrete from inside that had been hurting his foot.
He hissed quietly, feeling an intense throbbing paint his foot as he massaged it before putting his shoe back on.
"You had that the whole time?"
"Well yeah, I think it got in during the drone attack and I've been trying to ignore the pain ever since."
"..."
"So what are you going to do with it?"
"Can't I just remove a rock that has been trying to murder my foot without it being a plan?"
"In this situation, nah."
Alex rolled his eyes and sighed as he stood up, "Whatever. Just watch." He pecked at the motionless machines and went back behind the building.
'If I throw it and divert their attention with the noise, we might be able to enter the building.'
With that thought in mind, he threw the stone as far as he could, unexpectedly breaking a window.
They froze for a second then pressed themselves against the wall, peeking at the entrance only to stand horrified as the androids.... Stare. Directly. At. Them.
"You tried to do that throwing trick that only works on movies, didn't you?"
"I-I thought it'd work...."
"Does it looked like it worked?"
The machines aimed their guns, familiar red dots locked onto them promising annihilation.
"....Nope."
Immediately, Alex and Max took off running with the androids hot on their trail.
They ran around the building and directly inside the skyscraper, running around the place recklessly, without acknowledging the futuristic setup of the interior as they barely dodged the blasts, with one stray hit that vaporized a potted plant.
|A HUMAN AND A CANINE HAVE INFILTRATED THE TOWER!|
The words echoed across the city, alerting all the robots.
Badum.
Alex and Max continued running around the building, their routes of escape blocked by incoming androids.
Badum.
Soon, they were cornered as they hit a dead end, trapped between the wall and their approaching mechanical executioners.
Badum.
Max barked in fear, bearing his teeth as his trembling body stood in front of the boy, shielding him.
Badum!
Alex was pressed against the wall, his breathing erratic and his eyes wide with sweat dripping down his face as the sound of his heartbeat rang loudly in his ear.
Badum. Badum! BADUM!
'I don't want to die '
'All I wanted was to confess to Mia. Not this!'
'엄마! Dad! I'm scared....'
'I want to go home.'
Tears streamed down his face as he choked a sob, and with a sudden burst of strength from pure desperation, he took out the sword and rushed in front of Max, charging at them while recklessly swinging it.
The sharp blade's smooth surface deflected the bursts, redirecting them at the bots, vaporizing some of them while the others were sliced by Alex, destroying them.
Alex didn't know what was happening as his mind went completely blank, continuing his relentless attacks.
He soon snapped out of his fear induced trance when Max rubbed against his leg, tapping his paw on his shoe.
His brown hues were filled with panic and confusion as he surveyed the place, from the robot parts scattered on the floor to the ground that was too far down, making him realize that they were nearing the top floor.
The sword fell from his hands with a loud clatter and knelt to the ground feeling weak in the legs, then brought his knees to his chest, curling up as he cried.
"T-that ...was ....so terrifying."
Max whimpered, his ears droopy as he stood in front of the boy, tapping his paw gently on his arm and licked his hand.
"It's alright, Alex. You did great out there."
"..... Really?"
"Just look around, dumbass. Your nerdy self sliced those things like a pro."
Alex laughed softly, sniffling as he wiped away his tears, rubbing his puffy red eyes then wrapped his arms around the golden retriever, who's tail wagged as he melted in his companion's embrace.
"Now let's go to the top and get those items, yeah?"
The boy nodded with a wobbly smile, slowly standing up with his legs still trembling slightly as they walked up the hovering steps, heading to the top.
Once they found themselves standing before a glimmering silver door that opened automatically, revealing a gold office.
The walls glittering in the light from the large window behind a very comfortable looking, empty black chair as a fresh minty scent filled the room.
And at the top of the hovering desk, laid a vintage revolver and cyberpunk goggles on top of a glowing sigel.
Alex shivered from the cool breeze, rubbing is arms as he and Max walked towards the desk with exaggerated caution, then carefully took the items as the runes vanished.
Click
[Trial Three — Complete]
[You've successfully obtained the items without being caught:
-A gun of a nobleman
-Goggles of a cyborg]
"A cyborg?? Awesome!"
[Trial Four: Find the two items without dying]
"Do all your trials involve us getting killed?"
[Maybe~]
Before Alex could utter a word, the room began to glow, the world glitching as they were slowly engulfed in darkness.
Ding
The duo found themselves in an elevator as the doors slowly opened, revealing a very dark room.
They remained motionless, staring into the dark with unease, before backing up inside, pressing their backs on the wall.
Suddenly, an invisible force pushed them, sending them stumbling to the ground outside the elevator.
Before they could react, the doors closed shut and vanished, leaving them dumbfounded as they sat on the ground.
[Trial Quest: Survive The Forest
-Escape the forest in 24 hours
-Collect the ten items
-Stay alive
•Duration: 13 hours 50 minutes
•Reward: ???
•Failure: Erasure from existence]