The stench of burning flesh still hung in the air. The Sleeper's corpse lay in a smoldering heap, its once-mutating body now reduced to charred remains. But the unease hadn't left.
Reaper wiped blood from his mouth, his muscles still tense. "That was too easy."
Evelyn shot him a glare. "Easy? You got thrown through a car."
He grinned, cracking his neck. "Still breathing."
Mia kicked at the blackened corpse, her shotgun still raised. "Think it's dead for real?"
A low growl rumbled through the night.
Their breaths caught.
Across the ruins of the street, a figure emerged from the shadows.
Taller than a man, but hunched forward on massive, sinewy arms. Its skin glistened under the firelight, a sickly, golden hue stretched over cords of pulsating muscle. Its face was worse—what looked like a skull covered in shifting, plated armor, its brain partially exposed and throbbing. And that tongue. Long, thick, twitching, tasting the air.
Mia whispered, "What the f*** is that?"
Evelyn's heart pounded. A new strain. An Alpha.
The creature twitched, its claws flexing. Then, it vanished.
"MOVE!" Evelyn screamed.
The monster hit them like a wrecking ball.
Reaper was hurled sideways, crashing into debris. Mia fired point-blank, but the Alpha caught her wrist, twisting hard. The shotgun spun from her grip.
Evelyn barely ducked as a claw sliced overhead, taking out a street sign like it was paper.
It was fast. Too fast.
Mia wrenched herself free, rolling back. "F*** this thing is strong!"
The Alpha's head jerked toward her. It snarled—then charged.
Reaper came from the side, sinking his blade into its ribcage.
It didn't even flinch.
The Alpha backhanded him, sending him sprawling. The knife was still lodged in its side—but the wound was closing.
Evelyn's mind raced. Regular weapons wouldn't cut it. Fire worked before—but how could they trap it?
Her eyes landed on an old gas station across the street.
She yelled, "Lure it inside! We light it up!"
Mia caught on immediately. "Hey, dumbass!" She fired her pistol at the creature's head—it barely staggered, but it turned, now focused on her.
Mia took off toward the station's shattered doorway.
The Alpha roared and lunged after her.
Reaper was back up, moving fast. "Let's go!"
Evelyn sprinted with him, keeping low.
Mia dove through the broken glass just as the Alpha smashed through the entrance behind her.
Reaper was already moving. He fired into the exposed gas pumps.
The explosion was instant.
A fireball consumed the entire station, swallowing the Alpha inside.
The force threw them back as the inferno devoured everything.
But as the flames raged…
Something moved inside.
And it was still alive.