Ava stood there staring at the empty doorway, feeling stupid. She expected her speech would at least get some kind of reaction out of him. Maybe make him realize he was being an idiot. Instead he just walked away like she wasn't even worth arguing with.
"Well shit," she muttered.
"Is he really gone?" asked the blonde girl.
"Looks like it," she said, still staring at the door.
Jax managed to get Diana to sit up. She was groggy and kept blinking like she was trying to figure out where she was.
"What happened?" she asked, touching the side of her head where a bruise was forming.
"We got our asses kicked," Jax said. "Then some guy showed up and saved us. Then he left."
"Some guy?"
"Yeah, I don't know who he was. Skinny kid, looked like he could bench press a car."
Ava walked over to them. "His name is Nox. He goes to our school."
"Never heard of him," Diana said.
"Most people haven't. He's one of those kids who just blends into the background." She looked back at the door one more time. "Apparently not anymore though."
There were four other students still alive in the gym. The blonde girl, two guys who looked like they were on the basketball team, and another girl who was maybe a sophomore. They all looked terrified and lost.
"So what do we do now?" one of the basketball players asked.
Ava looked around the gym at all the dead monsters and dead students. The place was a complete disaster. Blood everywhere, broken equipment, holes in the walls.
"We can't stay here," she said. "More of those things might show up."
"Where can we go though?" the blonde girl asked. "Those monsters are everywhere."
"I don't know yet. But we need to find somewhere safe and figure out what's happening to us."
Diana was testing her telekinesis by making a basketball float in the air. It was wobbly and she looked like she was concentrating really hard, but it was working.
"I can still do it," she said. "The mind thing. It's not as strong as before but it's there."
"Good," Ava said. "We're going to need every advantage we can get."
Jax tried to stand up and almost fell over. His face was pale and he was shaking.
"Take it easy," Ava said, helping him stay upright. "You look like hell."
"I feel like hell too. That power really took it out of me."
"What was that anyway? Where did it come from?"
"Some voice in my head offered me a deal. Power in exchange for serving someone's interests." He rubbed his forehead. "I was desperate so I said yes."
"And now?"
"Now the voice is gone and I feel like I got hit by a truck." He looked at his hands. "I'm still stronger than I used to be, but nothing like what I was a few minutes ago."
"Think it'll come back?"
"I have no idea."
Nox mentioned something about stats and levels, like this was all some kind of video game. Maybe that was what was happening to all of them. Maybe they were all getting powers but in different ways.
"We should get out of here," she said. "Find somewhere we can rest and figure out our next move."
"What about him?" the blonde girl asked, pointing at the door Nox walked through. "Should we try to find him?"
"No," Ava said quickly. "Trust me, we're better off without him."
Even as she said it though, she kept picturing how easily he killed that huge monster. How he just punched its head clean off like it was nothing. Having that kind of power on their side would be useful.
But he made his choice and she made hers. She wasn't going to abandon people who needed help just because it was easier to be selfish.
"Come on," she said to the group. "Let's see if we can find a way out of this place."
They started moving toward the gym exit, Jax leaning heavily on Diana. The blonde girl stayed close to Ava, clearly looking to her for leadership now.
'Great. Now I'm responsible for all of them.'
She glanced back one more time at where Nox disappeared into the darkness of the hallway. Part of her wanted to follow him. Not because she liked him or even trusted him, but because he was clearly the strongest person she encountered since this nightmare began.
But that wasn't who she wanted to be. She wasn't going to become a selfish monster just to survive.
The group made their way through the wrecked school, moving slowly because of Jax's condition. Diana was using her telekinesis to push debris out of their path, which was helpful but also clearly draining her.
"There," one of the basketball players said, pointing ahead. "The main office. It looks intact."
He was right. The administrative wing seemed less damaged than the rest of the school. Maybe because it was further from where the monsters first broke in.
"Good eye," Ava said. "Let's check it out."
They approached carefully, Ava leading the way with her hands ready to throw fire at anything that moved. But the hallway was quiet. No monsters, no sounds of fighting.
The office door was locked.
"Hello?" she called out, banging on the door. "Anyone in there?"
Silence. Then a muffled voice from inside.
"Who's there?"
"Students. We're looking for somewhere safe."
More muffled voices, like people were arguing. Then the sound of furniture being moved and the door opened a crack.
A middle-aged woman peeked out. Ava recognized her as one of the school secretaries.
"Oh thank god," the woman said, opening the door wider. "Come in, quickly."
They filed inside. The office was crowded with maybe a dozen people, mostly staff but a few students too. They all looked scared and exhausted.
"Are you hurt?" the secretary asked, looking at Jax who was barely standing.
"He needs to rest," Diana said. "We all do."
Ava looked around the room. These people seemed safe for now, but they were just hiding. They didn't have any real way to fight back if those monsters found them.
'We need to get stronger. We need to figure out what's happening. And we need to find a way out of this school.'
But for now, rest would have to do. They weren't going anywhere until Jax recovered.
She found a corner and sat down, her back against the wall. Her hands were still tingling with that fire energy, and she could feel it buzzing under her skin like a second heartbeat.
Whatever this power was, she was going to learn how to use it. And then she was going to find a way to help everyone get out of here alive.
Even if she had to do it without Nox's help.