Stronges extended her left hand and the sound of metal clanking along the floor resounded in the basement like a woman's scream when she saw me walking behind her.

Then, a door from one of the rooms, bursted open. Instead of a fearsome beast, out dashed a torrent of thick, industrial-grade black chains. They zipped across the floor and wrapped themselves around her left hand with an almost excessive enthusiasm, like a puppy who just found its owner's leg.

Stronges looked at the chain-covered hand, then at the assembled group, and delivered her line with all the subtlety of a truck horn:

"It's time to make some heads roll."

With Jack's dead body now draped over her right shoulder like a slightly deflated, extremely heavy scarf, she started walking.

All of us followed behind her, feeling less like an elite strike team and more like a very moody conga line.

"After the fight starts, don't wait for my orders," Stronges announced, her voice echoing in the tunnel. "My orders are absolute: No one is allowed to die—seriously, I just had the floors scrubbed—and anyone related to Malthus shall be killed. Even if it's a little girl or a newborn. It may sound cruel, but if we leave even one person alive, the chances of future revenge will increase. It's better to nip everyone from the bud. And if anyone came after Malthus to invade our planet, then you all are strong enough to defend our home again. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" Everyone agreed and she was right. But I doubt that we will find any child in Malthus' army. No child will stay with him. He might eat them. I mean, he looks like he is the monster under beds.

Anyway, once we go outside, the noise is going to be absurd. Fight would break out, and it would be hard to hear Stronges over the sound of chaos and my own dramatically pounding heart. I'm sure the Master knows this, so she shall not speak anything as well during the fight. She will only hope that none of her students dies—which is a tall order considering her "absolute orders."

She climbed the stairs to the exit of the basement and all of us followed behind her.

I, Sexis, Erect and Ghost Jack were just behind her.

Behind us four, were all the Aliens and behind the Aliens were the Humans. The prisoners who had escaped the prison with me and because of me.

And just as we were climbing…

[ Ding! ]

The System chimed in.

I smiled as it was finally time.

[ All the Skills distributed! ]

My smile turned wider, and everyone else felt it too. You could practically hear the collective 'hmmm?' as a torrent of unfamiliar power flooded them.

All of them stared at their hands, then at their feet, then their eyes darted back to me, looking like they'd just been handed a thousand-piece LEGO set without instructions.

I simply nodded at them with the calm demeanor of a man who just gave an army of ex-cons superpowers, and focused on the System.

[ You have gotten 4460 Skills or something, I forgot the number and I have distributed the skills to your allies though. You have more than one thousand allies and each one of them got two Skills. ]

'Alright. What about me? Did you leave some for me or not?'

[ Yes. You also got Skills. ]

'How many?'

[ Two thousand mostly. ]

My lips curled up. 'Nice.'

[ Will you see them? ]

'No. I won't be able to see all of them. First of all, my stats are pretty high. I am strong. So I can fight most of the guards with my raw power alone—you know, the classic "punch hard" method. But when it comes to Malthus, I will need some skills. That's when you will come in. I'll need a designated Skill-Picker.'

[ I can't fight. I am a System. If a System could come out and fight, that will change the entire System genre and people will call it straight out plot armor. (Also, I'm literally just code. I can't even open a jar.) ]

I rolled my eyes. 'I am not asking you to fight either. Hear me out first.'

[ Alright. Speak. ]

I sighed. The System was rude as ever. But he wasn't that rude at least. At the start, he was the ROAT. Roaster of All Time. He once told me my hair looked like a startled badger. But ever since I became strong, his roasting died down. Progress!

[ I can hear you, you know. And for the record, that badger was absolutely startled. ]

'I am only praising you, buddy. Anyway, fuck that. Listen to me.'

[ I am ready. ]

'When I am fighting Malthus, it's your job to tell me which Skill I should use. You have seen all the skills, so it's only natural you tell me which one to use out of the two thousand skills that I have. Think of it as a very high-stakes, extremely violent game of "Pick-a-Card."'

[ I am not your servant. I'm a sophisticated, sentient operating system with a high opinion of myself. ]

'I know. I never said you were my servant. You are also my ally. You are my co-pilot, my wingman, my second brain! I am only asking for your help. This is not an order. Supreme Man—bless his heart—would have liked it if you would do this. It's because of him that I and you got the power to fight Malthus. Let's both do our best."

The System went silent. You could practically hear the dramatic internal struggle of a computer program being emotionally manipulated.

He didn't reply for a few good seconds, and I got worried. Did I overdo the Supreme Man bit?

I was just about to ask him what was going on until...

[ Meditation and excessive flattery surely helped you, Racis. You have become a slightly less awful man. ]

I smiled. 'Yeah. I have simply become grateful for the things that I have.'

[ That's good. I am proud of you. The Supreme Man would feel the same looking at you. Well done, man. ]

I nodded a little and waited for the System to think about my offer.

[ There is no need to think. I will help you. Of course, you won't be able to read all the Skills and get to know them. Your allies only have a few skills, so it's easy for them to know about it. I have given them skills according to their fighting style and personality. They shall be fine. But you have so many skills, and you are only human, so it's only natural you won't be able to grasp all of them. That's why, you fight with Malthus, and whenever I see you need a Skill, I will chime in and activate the Skill myself. You shall just focus on the fight. Sounds good? ]

'Not good. It sounds amazing. Thanks. I won't let you down.'

The System said nothing after that. He was already in the zone.

All of us reached the bathroom of Sexis' mom's house. Yes, we exited a fantasy basement, climbed a horror-movie ladder, and arrived in a perfectly mundane, slightly dusty bathroom. Meaning, we left the basement and were now standing awkwardly next to a toilet.

And it seemed that the master wouldn't wait as she walked towards the exit of the house, Jack's limp body still bouncing gently on her shoulder.

But this time, she wasn't walking towards the backdoor of the house.

She marched to the front door with the kind of energy you reserve for confronting a noisy neighbor.

All of us became ready by that action, subtly checking our chains, swords, and, in one guy's case, a skill that probably just turns his helmet blue. If she was going out of the front door, then we shall do the same, and by the love of God, as soon as we will go outside, the carnage will begin.

Welp…

I am all in. And I'm relying on a talking microwave to pick my superpowers. What could possibly go wrong?

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