36 PVP

Gadget cursed loudly. Her last drone was set up as another distraction drone. She had already sacrificed the rest just to survive so far. Jake stood up and Cass slid off him as he let her go. He felt her tense up and expected her to shoot. To his surprise, she didn't but just glared at the man. It probably wouldn't have worked, he doubted they would have tried this without knowing they could stop her attacks too.

"You really should have joined us." Killgore said with a sad smile that didn't match the hungry look in his eyes. "We would have made you amazing. But, if you won't join us." He paused. "Well, I can't have any stray uniques running around can I?"

"So what. Do you plan to kill us? That was your plan before right? When you lured the monster to attack us." Cass snarled.

"It was." Killgore admitted. "It was going to just be another warning. I planned to give you another chance to join up. But this." he waved his hand around them. "Is too perfect. I never expected to get you all in a Permadeath zone."

Ella rolled her eyes. "Big deal. We have to reroll characters. Is that really worth ruining your reputation over?" Jake could see her sweating despite her brave facade.

"You don't read well do you? No wonder you ended up as some magic scrub. Your access to the game gets deleted too." Killgore spoke like he was speaking to a slow child.

"There is no way they would do that. That is just a bluff. No game would delete your access." Ella said, she sounded confident.

"Well, none of the others I have killed ever showed back up." He grinned. "So yeah. I think they really do."

"You really player killed people in a permadeath zone? What a limp dick." Gadget snickered. In the group chat, she spoke. "What is the plan?"

Killgore smirked and his eyes raked over her body in a way that made her shiver with disgust. "I've done a lot more than that. It is amazing how real the game is." He looked her in the eyes and grinned. "You can't log out no matter how badly you want to."

"Kill them all." Aero snarled into the group chat.

Suddenly, the tunnel filled with thunder and fire. Everyone thought Cass had fired off right next to them. But they were wrong. The entire time he had been standing there Killgore had his flak cannon hanging at his waist, pointed at them. Both hands gripping the handles casually. All six barrels had erupted fire and steel.

The blast hit Jake in the chest without warning. The impact destroyed his shield in an instant. Shattered the metal of his chest plate and sent him smashing into the barrier behind them. With a sizzling sound, he rebounded off to crash to his knees on the ground. His health was reduced to a tiny crimson sliver.

"God damn boy. There is no way you are D ranked. I've one shot B rank players and bosses with my Alpha Strike skill. Yet here you are. Still, alive." As Killgore spoke, Cass swung her gun and fired. Her round hit the barrier and like Jake bounded off. It ricocheted several times before hitting Gadget in the back. Her shield broke and she staggered. But it had managed to keep her from taking health damage from the weakened attack.

All of Gadget's healing drones zipped to Jake bringing him only up to about twenty percent. His total health had increased further since the Grim battle. "Nice try. Take a few more shots. Just try to finish off the guys first. Try not to break my toys before I get the chance to." Killgore leered at them.

"Get ready to move. Don't fight them. Just run down the tunnel behind us. Get out of this damn permadeath zone." Jake's voice came through the group chat sounding calm despite the situation.

Before anyone could ask. He vanished.

Since the barrier had gone up Jake had tried to use his Rift Jumper ability. When he focused beyond the barrier there had been a tingling pain in the back of his head. His attention was pulled away and his attempt failed. It hadn't stopped him from trying though. Each time the pain grew worse, but the pulling sensation took longer to drag him away. He could feel it. Just a little more and he would be able to jump. The shot had caught him off guard. It hurt more than anything he had ever experienced. For a moment he thought he would suffocate as it felt like his chest caved in. Then Gadget had healed him. It still hurt. But he could breathe. When he looked again at his goal. The pain in his head was nothing compared to what he had just suffered. His focus narrowed and tightened. Then he felt it lock in.

He didn't wait. He activated his ability as he gave instructions to the others. Everyone, Killgore included, Expected the attack to come for him. Instead Jake appeared in the air behind the tall woman. His oversized right hand closed in on her head. Her shield flashed in response to his crushing grip preventing him from just obliterating her head. It did not hold out as he knifed his left hand and thrust his claws through her chest. His hand exploded in a spray of blood from her chest as his grip on her head closed. Blood and gore sprayed violently from between his fingers.

The glowing barrier around the others vanished. "RUN!" Jake shouted as he flung himself backward over the edge.

Killgore turned to face the others as he started to reload. His Alpha Strike ability consumed all his ammunition to give a single overwhelming attack. The other two turned to rush to the edge looking down at Jake. For a brief moment, the others froze. They didn't want to abandon Jake.

"GO GO GO I AM RIGHT BEHIND YOU!" Jake shouted over the group chat and the others reacted. Turning to run as instructed.

The Plasma Shotgun wielding member of the Uniques leaned over the edge and fired off several blasts. It sprayed pellets of dark green energy that sizzled as it cut through the darkness to pepper Spider's falling corpse. It would have made swiss cheese of Jake as well. If he was still there.

He appeared out of thin air right above the shotgunner. His clawed foot smashed into the back of his head. The blow wasn't strong enough to break through their shield. But that hadn't been the goal. Jake kicked off, using him as a springboard to dive forward back into the tunnel. The shotgunner shrieked as he went over the edge into the shaft. Jake landed in a roll and popped up. Coming point blank face to face with the Flak Cannon.

The ground lurched under them with enough force to topple both. The tunnel shifted violently beneath their feet and filled with the roar of another blast. Burning flak passed so close to Jake's masked face it left burn marks on his mask but him unharmed.

The tunnel was practically at a forty five degree angle from before. Light rushed in from the direction Jake's friends had run, outlining them. Behind them, the opening to the shaft was now filled. The tortoise over them had stepped on the edge of the hole, its gigantic foot crushing the earth and uprooting it as it slipped back into the hole. The strange hard tunnel they were in seemed unwilling to break and had been pushed up like a pipe out of the ground.

Jake could see his friends scrambling toward the light. He considered blinking after them but knew it wouldn't work. He couldn't make it that far even if his ability was off cooldown. As it was the overuse would leave him helpless long enough for them to finish him off. He dived for Killgore intent on pummeling him to death. The large Flakcannon was pinned between them, useless to the larger man. Jake had the advantage even if he couldn't bring the full might of his oversized fist down on him while pinning him in place. Until he saw movement out of the corner of his eyes.

The rail gunner dropped prone and was aiming. But not at Jake. With a scream of fury, Jake leapt off Killgore and pounced on the prone player. Their armor's shield protected them from taking damage but it messed their shot up. The narrow spike of metal floating between the prongs of the railgun shot off. It used electromagnets for propulsion but the sheer friction of the projectile caused the air in its wake to burst into flames. It went high passing over the heads of his friends to pierce the tunnel.

Jake drew back to smash in the rail gunner's head with his fist but instead had to jump all the way back. Another blast of Killgore's flak cannon filled the tunnel. Jake's armor had been completely destroyed in that first attack. He wasn't sure how much damage the attacks Killgore was using now would do. But he doubted he could survive even one. Gun tech classes always had very high damage to compensate for their lack of special abilities, not too unlike his own class.

Without hesitation, Jake picked up the Railgunner as they scrambled to stand up. He heaved it at Killgore like an improvised attack. Then darted forward intent on heading after his friends. He was fast. Maybe he could make it. Two on one with their better gear and his current condition, Jake knew he had no chance of winning while staying here. His best bet was to get outside the perma death zone. At least then if he was killed he would just teleport back to the hub.

Jake rushed up the slope unhindered as his clawed feet dug into the rough ground. Ahead he saw his friend's silhouettes and felt his heart drop. They were coming back. "NO. Keep going get out of the Perma…" Another blast from behind hit him. It lifted him off the ground as the searing metal hammered into his flesh. He crashed and skidded forward up the slope as his health bar went completely black.