“How It Ends”

Author’s Note: This is a Take Ten to Write story and has not been proofread for errors. If I feel inspired or if there’s interest in the story, I’ll post a revised, edited, and extended version at a later date. Happy reading!

He raises his gun at me. I’m backed up against a wall, completely out of ammo.

So this is how it ends.

I guess I had a pretty good run, but I’d been hoping for better.

His finger hovers over the trigger as he takes aim. I close my eyes and prepare for death.

A loud bang rings out. But I don’t feel any pain.

I open my eyes to see Layla standing in front of me, her gun still smoking. The man who was about to shoot me lies still at her feet.

“Come on!” she shouts. “We only have a minute left to get out of here!”

I scramble after her, picking up the man’s weapon as I pass. At least now I won’t be completely defenseless.

Layla zigzags through the streets. She’s been here before, I can tell.

I’m about to round the corner when Layla sticks her arm out to stop me. Bullets fly past me, making my heart jump.

Together, we peek around the corner. I take aim and pull the trigger. The woman drops dead.

“Let’s go!” Layla says, running into the courtyard.

I follow close behind her, reloading my weapon as I run.

Suddenly, a spray of bullets leaps out at us from behind. I dash behind a pyramid of crates, but not before getting a bullet to the arm. I wince in pain as I fire back at them. They all hit the ground.

“Layla?” I call, looking around.

There’s no sign of her.

Then, I see her. She’s sprawled on the ground on the other side of the courtyard. My heart drops.

She’s dead.

I tighten my grip on my gun. It’s up to me now. I’m the only one left standing.

I say a silent farewell to my partner and continue running. I hear explosions and gunshots all around me, but I try blocking them out. What matters now is that I make it to the checkpoint before it’s too late.

A sudden bang rings out, deafening me. I hit the ground face-first, the bullet still lodged in my back. Blood pools around the wound as my health decreases.

The bar reaches zero. I’m dead.

I let out a sigh of frustration and throw down my controller. The dreaded words scroll across the screen.

Game over.

Final Comments: I don’t like shooting games, but this music felt very action video-gamey.

Overall Rating: 🤔