Usurping the Universe

Alex was good at predicting, theorising, and analysing. It was more fitting to say she had a gift in this area. From a young age, she actively sought myriads of information, observed information, to drive her next actions. She analysed people's personality traits, habits, and thought processes and then used this information to predict their next move. This method guided her through her eighteen years of life and, somehow, her theories always bore fruit. 

At this very moment, Alex desperately wished one of her theories was wrong. She hoped there would be something else, an added twist, that would be a silver lining in this almost impossible situation, yet there was none.

Gone were the familiar outfits that had accompanied them for most of the stages. Instead, they found themselves in sleek battle suits, tightly hugging their bodies. A neon blue liquid hue ran within the suit. The wearer could feel the comforting chill seep into their skin and animate their bodies as the fluid passed through the miniature tubes that lined the suit at an astounding speed. 

Each of their physical forms was brimming with renewed vigour, ready to dive into stimulating activity, yet they all remained unmoving, the urge to act easily quelled by the icy terror that stilled every bodily function. The weapons they held brought them no sense of security. To the nine team members, Alex's description had not done this fiend justice. No words could describe such a ghastly presence. Waves of crushing defeat, despair and despondence hit them in grooves, a sense of futility and inadequacy overwhelmed them. There was nothing they could do against such an unfathomable being. Any flimsy idea of resistance they had envisioned previously, withered away. 

Alex's brain worked in overdrive- her mind racing to conjure a solution- as the doom they had hoped to avoid roused from its slumber. Seeing as her counterparts were out of commission, Alex zoomed in on her surroundings. 

Transparent walls with greenery on the other side boxed in a flexible layout with a series of finely designed modular workstations. Artificial light streamed in from the overhead ceiling lights, illuminating the sparsely decorated office. There was only one exit to the left of the group. At the centre of the white marble floor stood the upright, hulking creature.

Alex took in its appearance, the same as she had described, the madness in its orbs not lessened even slightly. Its aura felt a little less imposing and unconquerable for reasons Alex could not decipher. While she did not believe one could counter such a domineering aura so easily, Alex reluctantly accepted the idea that prior exposure built some immunity. 

In an abrupt movement, it faced the inconsequential ants, namely Alex's group. Every second drew on for what felt like millenniums. They all watched with bated breaths, and then the creature turned to the exit like it had never noticed them.

The creature walked towards the grossly undersized exit, brushing past the terrified group. The inadequate size of the exit did not hinder the beast, as it directly broke past the walls and created a suitable exit into a much more accommodating hallway. Alex was glad to see the beast had left, but not all her comrades had realized this, and those who did notice were still frozen from terror. 

Alex did not bring her teammates back to life, instead, she followed the abyssal beast into the well-lit hallway.

 Alex understood that success in this situation required eliminating all enemies before they could defeat each other. Allowing one team to annihilate another would end the entire battle.

Alex kept a reasonable distance from the beast, whose every step was loud and sluggish, her eyes alert for any way to shorten her path. After ten minutes of silent walking, Alex questioned the hallway itself. Perhaps it was unending and would only release the beast at a set time. Luckily, a door the size of a human came into view and the beast walked right past it, prompting Alex to enter the opening right away.

This passage was swathed in a profound darkness, unlike the plain but well-illuminated hallway. Despite Alex's enhanced sight, she could barely see, an unsettling condition. Her steps quickened, knowing she would not have much time to perform her operations, and she soon reached the other, brightly lit, end of the darkness. 

'Oh, how convenient.'

Alex counted fifteen living people donning the same outfit as hers, save the invigorating neon fluid, upon arrival. They had employed differing battle formations against each other, with varying strengths and weaknesses. They remained unaware of her presence, completely focused on each other. Alex's first concern was eliminating the leaders of each team, cutting off their hope for revival and preventing any escapes. She briefly glanced at the weapon she held- a thin, intimidating scythe- carrying the same blue neon fluid around its frame. 

To an onlooker, it was obvious who their formations sought to protect, and from the areas they had concentrated their attacks, one could pinpoint each team's respective leader. From her side, everything was in plain view. The empty storage boxes lining the walls would not get in her way. Every head was vulnerable to her precise aim. 

Alex knew her first shot would be the best one as the two groups were at a standstill with each other, sending one member each to fight in the middle ground. 

Carefully examining the weapon granted to her for this battle, Alex considered her options. She had always wondered about the practicality of fighting with a scythe, but her curiosity would not be quenched today. Alex broke the scythe's pole, careful not to alert them, in half and threw the bladed end at a leader, who was more exposed to her. Right after, she transferred the pole to her empty right hand and threw it through a slight break in the other team's formation. She performed her actions at a blinding speed that gave her opponents no time to react. 

They were horrified when their leader suddenly had a stick deeply embedded into their upper leg, only to look at the other team and find that the leader's leg had been completely sliced away. Only then did they trace the direction of the attack, and by then, it was far too late.