Level-Up Apocalypse: Surviving With The Assimilation System

Chapter 6: Return Home

It was through Finn's careful way of traversing the downtown area that they made their way into the residential parts of the city.

"Ah—I didn't miss this sight," Damian remarked.

On the street they walked along that was occupied by suburbs, the scenery of totaled vehicles and bodies laid on the asphalt.

"It's not too far now...We're almost there," Finn said, looking towards one of the street corners, one that he recognized better than any other.

There was a feeling of anxiety now that he was almost there, not knowing what to expect, not knowing if he could handle what he may discover.

As he remained still, looking down the neighborhood that he grew up in, a comforting pat to his shoulder came.

Damian looked at him, speaking softly, "C'mon, man. I'm sure your mom is fine."

He didn't know if it was a comforting lie or if Damian was truly a gentle enough soul to be so optimistic in such a situation, but he nodded his head nonetheless.

"Right...gotta keep moving," Finn said, reminding himself as he continued walking.

Along the sidewalk of the once peaceful suburban street, he felt his heart throbbing at the state it was now left in. As he entered the housing area, the sight of something up ahead made him immediately crouch down next to a bush by one home's front yard.

Damian looked confused before ducking down as well, "What is it?" He asked quietly.

"Up ahead," Finn answered in a whisper. "Monsters."

A small peek by both of the men found that the ransacked suburbs were occupied by a group of cruel goblins. It wasn't just the green-skinned fiends, but orcs and kobolds, prowling the streets as they collected bodies into a single pile.

"...Jesus Christ. Everywhere we go..." Damian said, placing his hand over his face in disgust at such a sight.

"I know—we just have to keep going," Finn said, having to look away from the horrific sight.

As the streets of the suburbs themselves were littered with fiends, he looked for an alternate route. He glanced over at a wooden fence at the side of the nearest house.

"We'll cut through the backyards," Finn said, pointing to the fence between two houses. "I know my way around here."

"Alright, lead the way," Damian said with a nod.

A quick glance was taken to make sure none of the monsters were looking their way before Finn quickly dashed from behind the bushes.

He kept low while moving, hearing Damian right behind him as he moved up the side of the gray house. As he approached the wooden gate, he nimbly jumped over it, landing in the backyard.

"Hyup—" Damian followed right behind, hopping over as well.

Leading the way, Finn carefully moved along the side of the house, taking silent steps as he took a peek into the backyard. There were some scattered pieces of the usual items–a barbeque grill, an inflatable pool, yet one thing stood out:

A goblin was there, fiddling with the human possessions as it poked at the pool curiously, murmuring to itself.

Finn pulled away, whispering to his companion, "There's only one goblin back here. I'll take care of it–watch my back."

"Sure," Damian agreed.

With a silent approach, he moved as the sharp-eared fiend had its back turned to him, now touching at the metal grill. As he got closer, he noticed the bloodstains on its hand, even more so on the club it wielded.

It infuriated him; the thought of the cowardly, weak monster toying with the creations of mankind, especially those of which belonged to ones it had killed. He kept himself composed, though couldn't help but release a sharp exhale as he drew closer, raising his hand as his dagger was called.

"Grah!" The goblin yelped as it suddenly spun around, yelling out again. "Graaaah!"

'Shit–!' Finn thought.

He didn't waste any time quickly plunging his dagger straight into the short fiends throat, not hesitating. As soon as he plucked his blade from its neck, blackened blood oozed out as the goblin dropped dead.

["Verdant Goblin defeated."] ["Anarch Token x5 obtained."]

[Experience Points: +150] [750/1000]

[Assimilated Ability from [Verdant Goblin]: "Goblin Language" | 2/5]

As Finn caught his breath, looking down at his hands as they were drenched in the slain fiend's blood, he turned around as he heard his companion running up behind him.

"Hey–we gotta move," Damian said in a hurry, looking around. "I think that yell called its friends over."

The sounds of frantic footsteps along with fiendish calls could be heard through the neighborhood, just beyond the picket fences.

"Right. Let's go," Finn said.

Before the fiends that prowled the streets could find them, both men hopped over the next fence into another backyard.

There was finally a stroke of fortune as they cut through the houses, finding that the monsters weren't lurking there.

"Almost there—just a few houses down," Finn pointed out with an exhale as he hopped over another fence.

After crossing over another backyard, another fence led back into the mainstreet with a little, yellow house sticking out to him on the other side.

"There it is," Finn pointed out.

Damian landed on his feet after flipping over the last fence, "--Yeah? Let's go, then–"

"Wait," Finn said, raising his arm to stop the man from stepping any further.

The heightened hearing of the assassin-class man picked up on the sound of footsteps nearby, bringing him to duck behind a bush by the sidewalk. Damian did the same, trusting Finn's senses over his own.

Down the left side of the street, a group of goblins passed by, dragging along with them the "spoils" of their raid on the suburbs; jewelry ransacked from the homes, among other accessories.

"Even more? God dammit, they're endless, I swear," Damian quietly remarked, keeping his axe ready.

Finn focused for a moment, utilizing his newly-acquired skill as he heard the goblins talking in their foul language within earshot.

["Goblin Language"]

As he listened in, what was once gibberish was automatically translated into his mind;

"Look at this! Look at this! Shiny jewel, from the stupid human's neck!" A goblin boasted, holding up the diamond necklace it seized.

"All dead. All dead. Human land is ours!" Another goblin said.

Hearing the obscene ramblings of the fiends, Finn stopped listening as he slowly exhaled, finding what was said between the goblins to mean little more than trouble.

Damian noticed the pale look on the young man, "What's up? Are you alright, man?"

"Yeah, let's just get across the street...her house is right there," Finn said, looking at the home belonging to his mother as it was but a mere dozen meters away.

Without gaining the attention of the prowling fiends, he led the way across the street with haste. As he stepped onto the driveway of the home he was raised in, he took note of the fact that the car was still there.

Damian seemed to notice the pause from him as he noticed the car, giving the young man a reassuring pat on the shoulder, "C'mon. She probably found a place to hide. We're here—nothing else to do now but to check, right?"

"Yeah, you're right," Finn agreed.

He went up the walkway that led to the front door, noticing the pots of flowers along it were still healthy. For some reason, that filled him with a bit of hope.

As he found himself at the door, he looked at it for a moment before drawing a breath into his lungs.

'It's fine. She's fine. Don't overthink it,' he convinced himself, grasping the handle.

As he turned it, he found that it was unlocked, but pushing the door in didn't move it in the slightest.

'It's locked—no, something is blocking it. It's heavy—furniture?' He guessed, attempting to push a bit more.

Damian was waiting behind him, watching as the door remained unopened, "Locked?"

"It's barricaded. That's good—that's a good sign," Finn remarked, feeling a bit of hope swelling up for once.

"Looks like that resourcefulness runs in the family. Anyway, we'll have to find another way in," Damian said.

"Yeah, let's go around the side,' Finn instructed, leading the way around the right.