MAY: ...you all might want to step back.
FULLER: Don’t need to tell me twice.

 
You let go of Mason and set down Maes, Chance doing the same with Melanie. You notice a look of recognition in the kids' eyes as they hurriedly huddle back with the others.



 
The doctor backs up and turns towards the flesh wall, reaching into their backpack’s side pocket and taking out their scissors. You grimace as they start hacking at the wall, Dwayne making a similar face as the wall makes a horrible noise in response- but he starts going for his own bag, drawing his shock stick and attempting to fry the flesh with it.
  

FULLER: Sh- Warn me next time, you could have fried me too!
DWAYNE: Just don’t touch it when I do, we’ll alternate strikes!

  

Chance gets back long enough to grab a shock stick, then steps forward with you, ignoring your advice. Nelson tries to follow his example, but Dwayne quickly catches him and pulls him back to help with the wall.
 

Chelsea continues to approach, and you tighten your stance.   
  

MAY: I don’t want to fight you.
MAY: I’m not letting you hurt anyone either, we can just talk-
CHELSEA: You have no choice.
MAY: We’ve talked before! Years ago!
CHELSEA: …

   

 
She stops, pausing to look at you intently. You pull your mask down as best you can with one paw, showing your face. There’s a slight flicker of recognition in her face, but it’s gone as quickly as it comes.
 

CHELSEA: I see a lot of kids here.
CHELSEA: It doesn’t change anything.
CHELSEA: What I’m going to do to you is still ideally a mercy, and I’d like to make it quick.

 
Chance speaks up, gripping his shock stick tight but keeping his tone stable.
 

CHANCE: So you’re going to kill the kids now, too?
CHANCE: If you can disobey your orders to do that, then why is it such a stretch to let us try and make it out?
CHELSEA: Because you will get caught.
CHELSEA: And they will torture you, and they will make you wish that your escape attempt ended here with me.
CHELSEA: The lives of these children are not going to get better. If they survive the hell that their mother is going to put them through, which is a very big “if”, they will live a life full of suffering and likely serve in the same position that I do now.
CHELSEA: I would not wish this life on anyone.
CHELSEA: Allow me to carry this burden and spare them from it.

  

 
Something shifts across her form, red flesh bubbling along her amputated arm.
 

CHELSEA: Let me prevent them from sharing my fate.

Looks like diplomacy’s out, and you don’t like the look of whatever’s happening with that arm. You tense up before rushing her, her eyes widening and the red on her arm stump growing as you slam into her body, knocking her to the ground and sending her staff clattering across the hall. 



You’re pretty sure you cracked at least one of her ribs in the impact, but she’s barely reacting past a menacing snarl on her face as she struggles against you. Her body’s practically starved and her claws aren’t sharp enough to leave much more than light scratches on your arms, and you are making sure to hold her back so that she can’t bite.

Why isn’t she immediately going for her weird magic?

Couldn’t she kill me right now-



As if to prove you right, her arm stump bursts, raw, red flesh exploding out from it into a massive meaty claw, gripping at your head and desperately trying to push you off of her. 

MAY: CHANCE?
MAY: HEY, CHANCE?!
MAY: COULD USE SOME HELP OVER HERE, CHANCE
MAY: PLEASE
MAY: SHOCK HER OR SOMETHING

 

 
Chance rushes over, using his weight to help pin down her newly-made arm.

CHANCE: These things are lethal, it could kill her!
CHANCE: Or hurt you, you're on top of her!
CHANCE: Do you--

 
He's cut off for a moment as he struggles to keep atop the giant claw.

CHANCE: Do you REALLY want me to do that?

MAY: Then turn the power down or use the other end!
MAY: I don’t know, just do SOMETHING!

   
Chance hastily apologizes under his breath, wincing just a bit as he lands a blunt strike on Chelsea’s nose. She snarls and tries to wrestle away as he goes for another, Chelsea narrowly avoiding the blow. 
 


You focus on Chelsea’s ribs in the meantime as she struggles, trying to hit where you think you heard a crack- only to hit a completely solid mass. 

Chelsea’s gritting her teeth, clearly strained by whatever she’s doing to keep you from going apeshit on her ribcage. 

CHELSEA: F-fuck you.
MAY: Have it your way.
MAY: Chance, move!

 
   

Chance pulls back and you go for her horns- unable to grab them properly, you settle for shoving them downwards towards the floor, Chelsea’s head far enough up to make for a small slam. It’s enough to daze her, allowing you to turn your hands and get a decent grip on her horns. You waste no time, lifting her head up high and crashing it back down with your weight.



Her face is not the same when she hits the ground, twisted flesh and horrible clustered eyes staring blankly up at you as she spits blood in your face. She doesn’t quite look stunned, but there’s some weariness to her face now. She’s dazed, but definitely not out for the count. 

That probably would have killed anyone else.
You’re starting to think you might be in over your head.
  

CHELSEA: You’re going to regret that-
CHANCE: Nelson, wait-!

 
Nelson swoops in from the side before she can finish, delivering a shock- non-lethal, thankfully- directly into her side...which courses through you as well. 
  

 
You topple, writhing momentarily- but Chelsea’s only briefly deterred before she knocks you and Nelson away with her other arm- now also transformed. 
 

As she gets to her feet, you can see that her body is half encased in flesh, and you bet the rest is on its way. She’s backing away while you lay sprawled, but you don’t think she’s retreating- she’s going for that fucking staff. 
  

CHELSEA: E...enough playing around.
CHELSEA: You’ve...had your fun wrestling me.
CHELSEA: I told you to surrender and let me make this merciful, and you didn’t listen.
CHELSEA: I didn’t want you to suffer. 

 

MAY: C-chance…
MAY: Get her, shock her, d-do whatever!

  
Chance darts around you, going after Chelsea.
 
You try to struggle to your feet, but the effects of the shock stick are still taking hold of your body. All you can do is stumble and crash back down onto your ass, swearing at your own inability to stand.

Goddamnit, Nelson.
 

MAY: DWAYNE, GET OVER HERE AND HE-HELP TOO

  

 
Nelson leans down to try and help you up, but you have bigger things to worry about.
 

MAY: Don’t worry about me- she’s gonna get that fucking stick!
NELSON: The what?
MAY: Th- the stick!
MAY: The staff!
MAY: Whatever! Get it!
NELSON: Don’t worry about that, we need to make sure you’re okay first!
MAY: For the love of-
MAY: Nelson! Put me down and go get it!
NELSON: But-

 

 
Nelson helps you up.

Dwayne rushes past in the chaos, and you’re thankful that at least someone other than Chance is being useful-
 
    

 
But no one’s fast enough. 
 
Electricity crackles through Chelsea’s form just as she arms herself, flesh creeping up the staff.
 
It doesn’t do much.


Chelsea turns, her attention now fully on Chance.

You’re not sure what the fuck to call her weapon, but it isn’t a staff anymore.

You feel the urge to run, but look behind you to see the wall of flesh - still mostly intact.
 

MAY: How’s the wall going?!
FULLER: We’re making progress, but- 
FULLER: Still can’t get through!
FULLER: Could maybe get a kid over if I tossed one through…

  
You hear one of the kids start to protest, but you don’t have time to babysit. You have to get in there and do something, now.


You break away from Nelson and run past Chance, the dog moving out of the way with a startled expression. You’re not entirely sure what you’re doing, but in the heat of the moment you go for a tackle-


Chelsea counters with a swipe and you wheel back at the last second, taking a shallow blow that otherwise might have killed you. Dwayne ducks just in time as well, narrowly missing his head getting sliced off. 
 

DWAYNE: FUCK ME.

  

Chance takes the opportunity to get a jab in with his shock stick, the transformed karacel jolting for a moment as the shock courses through her body. In that instant, you think you see a glimpse of sharp fangs extending from her mouth, but they’re gone as soon as you get your bearings. Must’ve been seeing things, and you don’t have time to dwell on it, anyways. Your arm stings.


Shit, you’re bleeding. She got your arm good, but it’s not gonna kill you. You bet the doc could patch this up fine, as long as you make it out of here alive.


Chelsea’s still standing, and she looks pissed- but with the extra help, you’ve got her surrounded.