We cut through the mobs as the band kept playing. The music was a shield, holding strong against everything except the biggest and nastiest of mobs. We barely took a scratch. What struck me, though, was that the shield wasn’t just protecting us, it was protecting all the human fighters, even the Temple.

  A group of fighters had started to form a perimeter around the band, fending off mobs while they played. They followed Headbanger with Megitsune, the rhythm powering us forward, cutting down the monsters and giving the healers room to work their magic.

  The tide was turning until I received the next message.

  I got the update through our chat network: a large portion of the Temple fighters were peeling off from the main battle and making their way inside the school. They were heading straight for the clock tower.

  Fuck.

  I sent out a message to intercept them, but the shield that was protecting us from the mobs also kept us from getting through to the Temple fighters. We needed the music to stop. But before I could send another message, a skeletal pterodactyl swooped down out of nowhere, crashing into the band. The music cut off instantly.

  The members of the band scrambled to their feet, dazed but still alive, pulling out weapons and engaging the flying fossil.

  They were shielded during the crash, thankfully, but it wasn’t enough to stop the chaos. At least they were still standing.

  I sent more messages to slow the Temple’s advance toward the clocktower, and the updates from the field came fast. We were pushing the Temple fighters back toward the stadium. Prema took over the chat and began organizing our forces. I had no idea where she was, but I trusted her to handle it. I refocused and got back to clearing out the mobs.

  As I took down a six-legged cat mid-lunge, I pinged Eric. Of all the creatures, these were the worst. They were small, fast, and had razor-sharp claws. Like fighting a cat on ecstasy. Except it had six legs.

  Chris: Where are you?

  Eric: We’re already here. Fighting our way in. Shah is leading us.

  Fuck. We needed to support them. I grabbed Shawn’s arm, pulling him toward the exit. “We need to get to the tower,” I said, but before I could move, a sudden wave of weakness hit both of us.

  A haunting melody echoed through the stadium, and I felt it sink into my bones. My stomach lurched as a wave of crushing sadness hit me. I struggled to keep my balance, but I couldn’t shake the feeling. All I could think about was my mom and how much I missed her. I could feel the tears welling up inside, the emptiness overwhelming me.

  But just as suddenly as it hit, I was jolted out of it. Jess was at our side, her hands glowing as she placed them on our shoulders. Her glare was icy, and her focus was unshakeable.

  It was her. The woman with Jess’s sister’s necklace.

  She stood at the top of the stadium with a microphone, singing some sort of Nordic folk song. The melody was slow and haunting. Accompanied by an electric guitar, the notes rang out through the stadium, loud and pure.

  I looked around. People were fighting the effects, but most of them were being overwhelmed. That wasn’t the worst part, though. The mobs... they weren’t attacking. She changed the song, and suddenly the mobs were turning toward us, but they weren’t charging. They were... herded.

  She was controlling them. And they were pushing us into the center of the stadium.

  We were being herded into a slaughter pen.

  This was bad.

  The few people who broke free from the influence were quickly taken down by the nearest mob. They were made examples of. The rest of us had no choice but to back away, falling in line with the herd.

  Jess was still working to clear the debuff from us, but I could see the effect it was having on everyone. The sadness. The helplessness.

  “We need to do something. We’re gonna get killed here.” Shawn muttered under his breath.

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  “I know. Working on it. But I can’t let go of both of you. This debuff is too strong. I need to hold on, or you’ll crash like the rest.” Jess’s voice strained as she spoke.

  I could hear it in her tone; she was close to her limit. “Why haven’t they attacked us yet?” I asked, though I already suspected the answer. This wasn’t an accident. This was Jennifer. She didn’t want us dead. She wanted us to submit.

  I glanced at the torn skirt of the singer in the stands, and I understood. She hadn’t had the chance to do this before; she’d been too busy fending off mobs. Now, she had the time to turn the music against us.

  I scanned the field. Our people, the Rebels, all had their heads bowed, their knees giving way. Most were crying, others just... lost. The sight churned my stomach.

  “Holy Nova?” I asked, already knowing Jess’s answer.

  “She’s too far,” Jess replied quickly.

  I briefly considered taking a shot at the singer, trying to silence her, but the growl of a nearby monster shattered the thought. The mobs were too close. My hands would be torn off before I could even draw my bow.

  Jennifer appeared and walked down the steps, her voice echoing across the field.

  “We can end this right now,” she said, her tone calm but commanding. “There is no need for suffering. Join us, and we will free you of this. All you need to do is submit.”

  My mind was racing, searching for any kind of opening. Then, a chat window automatically opened in my HUD. I skimmed it, and a small grin formed at the corner of my lips before silently thanking Eva for choosing this moment to act for me. I’d been ignoring the chat, but I needed to read this one.

  Jennifer stopped just before she had to step onto the field, but she kept the singer up in the stands, who still continued her haunting melody.

  “Rajan and Chris,” she continued, her eyes scanning the crowd. “You are the leaders of your people. I will accept your surrender on behalf of everyone.”

  She paused, letting the silence stretch. “Why throw away your lives so recklessly when we offer you progress?”

  I made a show of hesitating, but I could already feel Rajan’s eyes on me. He stood among the masses, blood splattered across his jacket, glaring like he could cut me down with sheer will.

  I turned to Jess. “Come with me.”

  She frowned but obeyed, keeping her hand on my shoulder. Shawn followed close behind. They whispered questions, but I cut them off quietly. “Trust me.”

  As we approached, I called out, “What do you offer us?”

  Jennifer’s smile widened, her voice smooth and sure. “Progress. Technology. I offer you the future.”

  I sighed and went down on one knee in front of her. The Temple fighters cheered, jeering as if victory was already theirs.

  Jess and Shawn knelt beside me, uncertain but following my lead. Around Jennifer, the Temple fighters raised their weapons, ready.

  I nodded slowly, staring up at her. “I think… it’s time you shut the fuck up.”

  Her eyes widened, and she drew a sharp breath as if ready to strike me across the face, but before she could, the roar of engines filled the air.

  The Temple fighters tensed, looking around in confusion, but I had timed this perfectly.

  Siva burst into the stadium on his bike, speeding across the field. At the last second, he launched himself off, flipping through the air and cutting straight through the guitarist’s instrument. The melody died instantly. The singer stumbled back, startled just before a burning projectile smashed into her microphone, destroying it and knocking her flat.

  I looked up toward the upper entrance. A kid in a torn red hoodie stood there, a smoking slingshot in hand.

  The spell shattered.

  The mobs began to stir again. One lunged at us, and Shawn met it mid-leap, his scythe flashing.

  And all hell broke loose.

  Again.

  The battlefield erupted into chaos, mobs, Rebels, Temple fighters, and our own forces colliding all at once. We were still outnumbered until the yellow taxis began pouring in.

  The cars drove straight into the field, their doors flying open as more fighters jumped out to join the fray. A battered school bus came screeching through next, spinning into a donut before slamming into a cluster of mobs. When it stopped, Andy jumped out, swinging a longsword, his armor newer but still bearing the scars of battle.

  We fought our way through to him. When we finally met, Andy gripped my shoulders with a breathless laugh. Shawn ran over and pulled him into a hug, then darted back into the fight. Andy just stared after him, dumbfounded.

  “What happened to him?” Andy asked and winced as he saw Shawn cut through a swath of Temple fighters.

  “Later,” I said. “We’ve got work to do. But I am so glad to see you.”

  More vans and buses crashed through the gates; the North had arrived.

  Siva carved his way through the melee until he reached us, and I pulled him into a hug. He’d done it. He’d brought the backup I knew we needed.

  “You got this?” I asked, turning to Andy.

  Andy nodded, raising his sword. “Hell yes.”

  He shouted an order, and the Northmen surged forward, pushing the line.

  I grabbed Shawn’s arm, and Siva fell in beside me. “We need to get to the tower.”

  I scanned the chaos for Jess but couldn’t see her until Shawn suddenly broke off, sprinting up the steps. We followed him and found her kneeling beside the fallen singer. Blood covered her hands as she wept.

  The woman’s throat had been slit from ear to ear. Jess clutched her sister’s bloody necklace in one hand and her scalpel in the other.

  Shawn knelt, gently pulling her into his arms as Siva and I kept the parameter clear.

  “Hey,” he murmured, voice steady. “It’s okay. But right now, we need to move, Jess.”

  He lifted her to her feet as Siva and I kept watch.

  I felt Shawn give me a tap on my shoulder.

  And then we ran.