“Get away from them!!” Kirina screamed as she watched her team mates engulfed in the fray of writhing tentacles. Without thinking about the consequences, she charged directly into the center of the moving mass, her halberd at the ready. Despite what had happened earlier, Kirina didn’t have time to reflect on her actions. As most of the tentacles turned towards her, she regretted her decision of jumping into the center ring. 

The tens of arms around her formed a surrounding circle, keeping their distance as she poked and stabbed at them with her weapon. The pushed closer and closer, giving Kirina less and less room to keep all sides of her guarded. “Вы лохи умные…” (You fuckers are smart…) she muttered to herself, teeth gritted into a pained grin. Occasionally one arm would dart out and slice her where she wasn’t watching. A cut appeared on her cheek, on her thigh, on her arm. Her suit was turning from brilliant blue to ragged and rusted. 

Kirina slammed the end of her staff on the ground, switched the position of her hands and heaved the halberd over her head. One hand over the other she started spinning the blade over her head, slowly at first, keeping the monster at bay. Faster and faster her hands moved, until the pulsing blue light from the blade became a constant stream. “Но я умнее!” (But I’m smarter!” She screamed as she spun the sword over her head, slicing and distracting the virus.

 Lines of sweat dripped down her face, into her eyes, her mouth. Her arms throbbed, but Kirina knew if she let go the arms would rip her apart. Straining her head, she tried to see her team mates. Had she succeeded in distracting the monster away from them? Were they ok? All she could see was a wriggling mass of flesh. Her arms throbbed, and her body lurched forward as her grip almost slid from the blade. 

Spinning it faster, each breath was ragged and followed by grunts of struggle or pain. The bright blue light that flashed from her halberd turned duller and duller by the second, and, all at once, it was gone. “NO!” Kirina shouted, her halberd dropping from her hands. “No no! Нет!” Kirina dropped to her knees and let out a strangled cry. The arms slid away from her slowly, and all at once she could see her team mates. 

Oliver, who she had just called superman, was lying on the ground. Michelle was near him, dumbfounded. She couldn’t see the rest of her friends at all. Kirina slammed a fist on the ground over and over, ignoring the pain that seared through her hand. “We could have done it! We could have!” She yelled to herself. Her lips curled into an ugly smile as her eyes closed. Spreading out in the dirt, the mud, the sea water, Kirina lay near her halberd. Silently she buried her face in her arms and grieved to herself, small giggles escaping her throat.