1.41 - The Four Muskateers
A laser blast hits my chest and sends my flying backwards. There’s no chance to survey our surroundings when we enter the next room. The drones and bots are hitting hard and fast there’s no waiting time or big moments like prior missions. The blast didn’t do much damage, but it had plenty of concussive force behind it. The rest of the guys rush in after I wave them off and do their thing. Kai’s brought out nearly every drone he’s got, Kevin and Daamin seem to be having some sort of competition. I’m just sitting here on my ass letting them do all the work. I shake off the blast and prepare to get in the game.
I rush in with Excalibur not really aiming for takedowns but enough to cause chaos until I can find cover. I blast a robot as I dive to cover. But I can’t stay long as another starts firing. I dive for a group of boxes and fire at two more bots. A group of drones circles me leaving me behind the boxes. I borrow a trick from Ashley and Kevin, and toss a grenade. As it nears the drones, I blast it causing a quick and fiery explosion that takes out several drones. A bot rushes towards me but I manage to send its head flying before any damage can be done. Another blast from the bots sends my flying through a stack of wooden crates. Three bots seem to zero in on the location. Firing from my back I manage to take out two. Daamin appears seemingly from nowhere and finishing off the third. I fire on a drone above his head, we share a quick nod before he rushes off and I get back to my feet. I fling a grenade like a baseball that explodes on impact sending a group of bots to the scrapyard.
“Round 1 complete,” there’s silence and the remaining bots and drones self-destruct.
Two timers appear projected above the makeshift arena; at the same time an elevator becomes visible. The first timer displays ten minutes until the next wave of enemies. The second displays twelve minutes until the elevator vanishes. It’s forcing us to make a choice.
“How do we take the elevator if there’s another round,” Kai asks.
“I don’t get it, the elevator should only be visible when we’ve completed the rounds,” I respond in confusion.
“I get it,” Daamin doesn’t seem surprised.
“What’s going on,” Kevin asks.
“It’s Kay. She’s created a trap for us. Even if she doesn’t kill all of us, someone is going to die. She wants someone to sacrifice themselves for the team at each part. More than anything, she wants you dead Alexandre. This level is probably an infinite fight. That’s for me. I’ll just fight until I’m exhausted and die. Next level, she’ll probably trap Kai in some crazy math problem so he can never upload the code. Last level, she’ll just kill you Alexandre,” Daamin lays it out plainly.
“So how do we beat it,” Kai asks.
“We don’t. It’s a death trap, we can’t win. We can only be a pain in her ass until the end,” I begin to reload Excalibur. “If this is how I die, I’m going to be worse than hemorrhoids or anal fissures. It’s going to be the worst turd she ever passed. I am going to be a pain she remembers forever.”
“Alright Dre, if that’s what you want, then I’m with you until the end,” Kai begins to jump and get himself hype.
“It’s great that you’re named after Alexandre Dumas because we’re like The Three Muskateers,” Daamin laughs. “Let’s do this.”
“There’s actually four musketeers,” Kevin speaks up.
“What,” Kai asks.
“Technically he’s right,” I shrug.
“I don’t get it,” Daamin says.
“Well, the book is called The Three Musketeers, it’s just one in a group of novels called the D’Artagnan Romances. It’s a series about D’Artagnan, obviously,” I shrug.
“You’re having a nerd moment,” Kai says. “I expect this from Daamin.”
“I don’t really read classic literature, shit is hard,” Daamin responds.
“Right,” Kevin says. “In The Three Musketeers the musketeers are made up of Athos, Porthos and Aramais. But, they can’t accomplish their goal until D’Artagnan joins them as the fourth musketeer. I’m the fourth musketeer. She didn’t expect me. She set this trap for three people but forgot to limit the ship to three. I’m the glitch in her system. She probably thinks you’re going to leave Daamin behind to fight, and she’s got just enough juice to kill him. But if I stay and fight, we can clear this up in no time. You two head to the next floor. Daamin and I will be up in time to help Kai. Then we all meet up and kill the final boss.”
“We don’t have much time to argue,” Kai points out the clock.
“Then just agree to it,” Kevin says.
“I’m in, let’s go for it,” Daamin says.
“Alright, I’m in,” I give Kevin and Daamin a thumbs up.
“This is insane,” Kai says. “But we don’t have a choice.”
“Well, if they do kill us, it was an honor meeting you all. Alexandre, this game is beneath you. Kai, I hope you marry your true love, and Daamin, I hope you don’t join the priesthood but find a real fun game to play,” Kevin holds his fist out. “To the four musketeers.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about but okay. To the four musketeers,” Daamin holds out his fist.
“It’s the ending of the book, they all survive and get what they want,” I add my fist to the group. “The four musketeers.”
“Well, if everyone lives at the end, I can live with that,” Kai ads his fist to the circle. “The four musketeers.”
The clock for the next wave is almost to zero, “good luck guys. See you in the real world,” I send my contact info to both and grab Kai’s hand before running to the elevator.
“Good, um, see you, good luck,” Kai stumbles his words as we reach the elevator.
As the doors close, we watch as the next wave rushes in. Daamin still using two swords, Kevin only using one. They seem to have everything under control for now. Even as larger robots and better armed drones arrive, they don’t budge or even look back to us. Finally, the elevator starts to move and they vanish from our sight.
“I hope they’re okay,” I say out loud.
“I guess elevators are our spot,” the words barley leave Kai’s mouth. I glance over and see that he’s staring down. That’s when I realize we’re still holding hands.
I laugh at his joke and let go of his hand, and pat him on the back, “Actually, I’m sure they’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, let’s do our part and not let them down,” Kai almost seems back to normal.
***
If you're enjoying the story, check out my newsletter on Substack
