The subway tunnel swallowed them whole, its suffocating darkness pressing in from all sides. Evelyn gripped her flashlight, her breath shallow. Every step echoed through the abandoned station, bouncing off the rusted tracks and crumbling concrete.
Mia winced, cradling her wounded shoulder. Blood seeped through her fingers. Reaper walked beside her, his shotgun steady, his eyes scanning every shadow.
"That thing..." Mia whispered, her voice shaking. "It wasn't just another mutation. It was something else."
Reaper nodded grimly. "The Crimson Harbinger. I've heard rumors. A Flesh Cult experiment—something designed to hunt. But if it's running... that means whatever's coming is worse."
Evelyn swallowed hard. "Then we need to keep moving."
A metallic groan echoed through the tunnel.
Then, a shrill, bone-chilling scream tore through the silence.
From the shadows ahead, a figure crawled into view.
It was human—or had been.
Its flesh was paper-thin, stretched over a skeletal frame. Its mouth hung open in an unnatural grin, jagged teeth protruding from bloodied gums.
Replaced by two gaping, hollow voids.
Evelyn took a shaky step back. "Oh God."
The creature twitched violently, its head jerking in their direction.
A high-pitched, piercing wail.
More movement in the darkness.
Crawling from the shadows.
Their bodies emaciated, their limbs stretched unnaturally. Some still wore remnants of their old lives—tattered uniforms, shredded dresses, rusted dog tags.
Reaper cursed. "Run!"
Mia fired at the closest one. The bullet punched through its skull.
Instead, its broken head twisted, realigning itself with a sickening crunch.
The Hollowed lurched forward.
The three survivors turned and ran.
The horde followed, crawling, sprinting, shrieking.
Evelyn's heart pounded as they raced deeper into the tunnels.
She skidded to a halt just inches from the edge.
Below—a pit of writhing, grotesque bodies.
The Hollowed piled atop one another, twitching, reaching.
Reaper grabbed her arm just as the first Hollowed leapt.
A shotgun blast tore through its chest, sending it tumbling into the pit.
But the rest kept coming.
Mia spotted a maintenance ladder leading upward.
"Climb!" she screamed.
Evelyn went first, Reaper behind her, firing as he ascended.
Mia was last—her injured arm slowing her down.
Below, the Hollowed clawed at the ladder, their soulless voids fixated on her.
A bone-thin hand grabbed her ankle.
Reaper reached down, grabbing her wrist.
With one last pull, he yanked her onto the ledge.
The three collapsed, panting, as the Hollowed screeched below them.
Then—a deep, guttural growl.
Not from the Hollowed.
And saw glowing red eyes in the darkness.