Godless Domain

 Kade and Zane stood rigid, positioned just inside the living room with weapons in hand, eyes fixed on the door. Their minds raced, bodies tense, prepared for whatever came through.

"Anything comes through that door, and WHACK. That's it, lights out," Zane muttered under his breath, trying to psych himself up. "I've got this. We've got this. Hell, I was planning to be a construction worker anyway—nobody swings a hammer like I can."

Kade nodded, his grip tightening on the bat. His thoughts weren't dissimilar. His body was ready, his mind focused. If something tried to get in, they were ready to fight.

Except... they hadn't anticipated this.

Smash.

The sharp crack of glass shattered the tense silence, snapping Kade and Zane back to reality. The kitchen window—the last place they'd thought to defend—had broken. Goblins didn't walk through doors; they smashed their way in.

The well-thought-out plan to ambush the goblins at the front door was already in ruins.

Zane was the first to react, his self-motivation suddenly flaring into action. He darted into the kitchen, hammer raised. As the first goblin crawled through the shattered window, Zane swung with all the force he'd imagined in his head.

But the gulf between theory and reality was brutal.

The hammer sailed through the air, missing the goblin by inches. The creature grinned wickedly, spinning quickly and throwing shards of glass right into Zane's face.

Zane yelped, stumbling backward, blood trickling from minor cuts all over his cheeks. His hammer dropped to the floor with a dull thud.

Before he could regain his balance, the goblin drew a short, jagged knife from its waist, ready to end what it had started.

That was when Kade's instincts kicked in.

Without a second thought, Kade rushed forward, the bat slicing through the air and connecting with the goblin's head with a sickening crack. The goblin crumpled to the floor like a ragdoll, its body twitching before it went still.

Kade was immediately by Zane's side, checking him over with quick, worried movements.

Zane looked up at him, a grin breaking through his pain. "My hero, my saviour…" He paused for dramatic effect, his voice laced with sarcasm. "Is this the part where I kiss you and we ride off into the sunset?"

Kade barely restrained himself from smacking Zane upside the head. The last thing he needed was this dumbass cracking jokes while their lives were on the line.

But before he could snap, a thought crossed his mind, freezing him in place.

The other goblins.

He remembered seeing at least three earlier, heading straight toward his house. So where had the other two gone?

Had they split up? Were they searching for reinforcements? How much time did they have before another one of those things showed up? He couldn't stop the cascade of questions running through his head, no answers in sight.

Zane turned to him, a flash of realization in his eyes. "We need to block that window."

Kade blinked at him. "Oh, really? What gave you that bright idea?"

Zane shrugged, his tone suddenly serious. "Hey, no need to snap. This... this isn't exactly a normal situation. I don't plan on going out like that. We need a way to defend ourselves—block the windows, secure the house. We can't just sit around waiting for more of them to show up. Plus, I need to find my parents, make sure they're okay."

Kade's heart sank. His family. Mom, Dad and Selene. The thought of them, uncertain, possibly in danger, hit him like a train. His brain began to race. Elara. She should've been home by now. Had she gone shopping? Was she safe? What about Selene? Was she okay? Dad?

Suddenly, everything spiraled out of control.

Fuck.

His breathing grew shallow. What was happening? What was he supposed to do? He felt his legs weaken, his mind spinning, and without even realizing it, tears began to spill from his eyes.

A young man, barely 18, standing on the precipice of adulthood, now had the weight of the world on his shoulders. The mother he'd lost five years ago had been hard enough to process. But this... this was too much.

The harsh reality of what was happening, the chaos that had unfolded in such a short time, all piled on top of him. Kade had never felt so helpless, so lost.

His chest tightened as he stared at Zane, his throat choking on words he couldn't quite say.

Zane didn't say anything—he didn't need to. He simply placed a hand on Kade's shoulder, offering silent comfort in the only way he knew how.

And in that moment, Kade knew. This was real. This was no nightmare.

The world as he knew it had collapsed, and the fight for survival had only just begun.