Alexia stretched her arms, the remnants of sleep still clinging to her muscles. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she muttered, “13:30… finally, a good sleep.”

  She yawned, headed to the bathroom, and splashed cold water on her face. It jolted her awake, but the unease of the lockdown lingered in the pit of her stomach. Her house was still in code red; the red glow from the security system panels reminded her that the danger wasn’t over. No updates yet, no sign that things were getting better.

  Making her way to the living room, Alexia flipped on the TV. Mindless daytime shows played on different channels. News was too heavy, and she'd had enough of hearing about the undead ogres for one day. She wandered into the kitchen, deciding to cook something to distract herself. Steaks and vegetables—her go-to comfort meal. The sizzling of the meat on the pan brought some normalcy to the day.

  Carrying her plate back to the living room, she sat down, propping her feet on the coffee table. She zoned out in front of a random sitcom, letting the laughter of the audience drown out the tension outside. But the thought of her situation gnawed at her, always in the back of her mind.

  As the afternoon drifted on, a sudden knock at the door startled her. She jumped, nearly dropping her fork. Quickly grabbing her tablet to check the security cameras, she saw a delivery man standing outside, flanked by two armed guards. It was strange, seeing something so mundane like a delivery happen in such a militarized way.

  Alexia sighed in relief and went to the door, speaking through the intercom. "Delivery?"

  "Yes, ma’am. Supplies for the lockdown," the delivery man responded, his voice muffled through the mask and gear.

  She hit a button, allowing the fortified entrance to open just enough for the supplies to be passed through. "Thanks," she called out, though it felt weird to be so casual in such a tense situation.

  With the supplies stored away, Alexia found herself with a lot of time to kill. She wandered into the garage, eyeing her car. "Guess I could clean this up," she muttered to herself, looking for something to keep her mind busy.

  She spent the next hour wiping down the dashboard, vacuuming the seats, and polishing the exterior. It felt good to focus on something simple. Once she was done, she sat inside the car, legs up on the seat, watching more shows on her tablet.

  The sun dipped low on the horizon, painting the sky with hues of orange and pink. But as the night crept in, so did the familiar tension. As soon as the last sliver of sunlight disappeared, the silence was shattered.

  The turrets roared to life once again, their heavy fire booming through the night air. Alexia’s stomach sank as she heard the unmistakable sound of the undead ogres returning, their guttural roars echoing in the distance.

  "Here we go again," she muttered, her fingers gripping the tablet a little tighter. She didn’t bother looking outside. She already knew what was happening. The battle against the undead wasn’t over.

  She turned the volume on her tablet higher, trying to drown out the sounds of the chaos outside, but no matter how loud the show was, it couldn’t fully erase the feeling that this night was just the beginning of something much worse.

  As the night dragged on, the clock ticked past 9 in the evening, and Alexia was on the verge of losing her mind with boredom. The relentless sound of the turrets firing had become an annoying backdrop, making it impossible to focus on anything for too long. Finally, she decided to video call Clayton.

  The screen flickered to life, and Clayton’s familiar face appeared. “Hey, what’s up? Everything okay?” he asked, his tone light.

  “Yeah, everything’s fine. I’m just bored out of my mind,” Alexia groaned. “And these turrets? They’re killing me. They’ve been going non-stop, so loud I can barely think.”

  If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

  Clayton chuckled. “Oh, right. Ryland cheaped out on the noise suppression system. Said it was a waste of money. Hell, she didn’t even want to install the turret system in the first place because, you know, her stance on the superhero thingy. But when it got mandated, she had no choice. Guess now you’re the one stuck suffering for it.”

  Alexia rolled her eyes. “What’s the point of having all that money if you’re not spending it, right? Like, seriously.”

  Clayton laughed, shaking his head. “Yeah, no kidding! But hey, spend it responsibly, okay? No more luxury cars for you, young lady,” he said, half-joking but with a hint of seriousness.

  Alexia scoffed playfully. “Okay, Dad!”

  As she glanced at the screen, something caught her eye. Clayton was moving past a crowd of people, the noise in the background definitely not from a typical lockdown. “Wait, are you outside? Is the lockdown lifted? Man, finally!” Excitement bubbled up in her voice.

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Don’t get excited just yet,” Clayton quickly added, waving his hand to calm her. “This, my friend, is one of the perks of living in the city. Unlike you, with your fancy fortified house, they moved us to a place called Astoria 2—Underground City.”

  “Underground city? What, like a giant bunker?” Alexia raised an eyebrow.

  “Yup! A bunker, but, like, way bigger. And just like the name suggests, it’s literally a city. You’d barely notice we’re underground if it weren’t for the lack of natural light,” Clayton explained with a smirk.

  Alexia let out a low whistle. “Man, I’m kind of jealous now. You get to walk around and see other people, while I’m stuck here with nothing but turrets and my TV for company.”

  Clayton laughed. “Yeah, well, at least you don’t have to worry about running into a Necromancer up there. I heard they’re still clearing out sections of the city just in case one found a way in.”

  “Great. That’s all I needed to hear,” Alexia sighed dramatically, sinking deeper into the couch. “But seriously, though… any word on when this lockdown is gonna end?”

  “Nah, nothing concrete. Everyone’s just waiting for the all-clear, but knowing how these things go, we could be here a while.”

  Alexia groaned. “Ugh, that’s what I was afraid of. Guess I’ll just have to deal with the constant barrage of turrets for the next few days.”

  “Well, look on the bright side,” Clayton said with a grin. “At least they’re doing their job. You’re still in one piece.”

  “Yeah, yeah, I guess you’re right.” Alexia chuckled. “Thanks for that… I guess I needed to hear something positive.”

  “Anytime, Alex. Just hang in there. We’ll be out of this mess soon enough,” Clayton reassured her, his tone warm.

  “So,” Clayton grinned on the screen, “What about dyeing your hair purple? I bet it’ll look killer with those runes on your arm.”

  Alexia laughed. “Purple? I’d probably look like a superhero wannabe—wait, scratch that, I am one now, aren’t I?”

  Clayton chuckled. “I mean, you’re halfway there. But hey, if you go full costume, at least let me design it. I’m thinking of something sleek. Maybe a cape—”

  “No capes!” Alexia interrupted, mimicking a dramatic voice from an old superhero movie. “I’d trip over it in a heartbeat.”

  Clayton burst into laughter. “Alright, alright, no capes. Maybe just some cool combat boots then.”

  Before Alexia could respond, the ground beneath her house suddenly shook. Her whole body tensed as she looked around. "Whoa… did you feel that?"

  Clayton raised an eyebrow, looking around at his surroundings. “Feel what? Everything’s steady down here. Are you okay?”

  Alexia paused, realizing the shaking seemed localized. "Wait, is it just me? I think the ground just shook over here."

  "Nah, nothing down here," Clayton said, glancing around at his surroundings in Astoria. "Are you sure it's not your imagination? I mean, you've been on edge with all the turret noise."

  "No, this is different," Alexia muttered, her brow furrowing. She focused on the sounds outside. She activated her super hearing, but immediately regretted it. A flood of chaotic noise hit her all at once—the sound of the turrets, the distant roar of something massive, and a cacophony of mechanical and natural sounds. It was overwhelming.

  "Ugh," she groaned, covering her ears, "too much!"

  "Alex?" Clayton’s voice echoed from her tablet. "What’s going on?"

  "Give me a sec!" Alexia snapped, fighting to control her senses. She concentrated, filtering through the noise, and slowly, she managed to pinpoint something—heavy, rhythmic thuds, like… footsteps. Giant footsteps. Her eyes widened as she realized what she was hearing. "It’s not an earthquake. It’s… footsteps. Giant ones. It could be a Gigantic Undead ogre, I think. It’s close!"

  "Wait, gigantic ogre?" Clayton’s voice was filled with disbelief.

  Alexia’s heart raced as the vibrations continued to shake her home. "Yeah, pretty much. And it’s getting closer."

  Before Clayton could respond, a deafening sonic boom split the sky above Alexia’s house. The sheer force of the sound sent a painful jolt through her head, her super hearing amplifying every decibel. She clutched her ears, gritting her teeth as the noise rang like an explosion in her skull.

  "Clayton… something just hit insane speeds above my house... I think… I think it's one of the heroes—no, wait… I hear the sound of chains." she whispered, struggling to speak over the pain.

  Clayton frowned, "Chains?"

  "Yeah," Alexia whispered out of breath.

  Suddenly, there was another sonic boom, this time followed by the unmistakable sound of chains being whipped through the air.

  "Alex?" Clayton’s voice came back, filled with tension. "What’s happening now?"

  "I can hear the colossal ogre roaring—it’s being lifted. The chains are wrapping around it, pulling it up… and then it’s fading. They’re moving it away, fast."

  As the colossal ogre's roars faded into the distance, an eerie silence settled over the area. Alexia barely had time to process it before another deafening sonic boom tore through the air, closer this time, shaking her entire house. Her heart pounded as the source of the sonic boom closed in, the sound growing louder. She held her breath, bracing for impact.

  But just as quickly as it came, the presence shot upward again, disappearing into the sky with a final, thunderous boom.

  And then, everything went still.

  The turrets outside her house abruptly stopped firing, their relentless rhythm ceasing as if the threat had vanished into thin air.

  "Hold on," Alexia muttered, as she looked at the monitors, her eyes widened as the monitors displayed the still bodies of the undead ogres, all sprawled across the ground, defeated.

  "They’re dead," she whispered, half in disbelief.

  "What?" Clayton asked, his voice crackling through the call. "Did the turrets take them down?"

  "No," Alexia said, shaking her head. "I don’t think so."