The Flesh Reaper should have died. It didn't.
Through the settling smoke and crumbling debris, its mangled body reformed, bones resetting with sickening pops, flesh knitting itself together. What should have taken hours—happened in seconds.
Leon cursed under his breath. "That… is not fair."
"Run," Evelyn whispered, her voice tight. "Now."
But the Flesh Reaper was faster.
It lunged from the wreckage, an unnatural blur of raw, twitching sinew and serrated claws. Lucas barely had time to roll aside as its massive arm slammed down, cracking the pavement like glass.
Mia fired—three direct shots to the head. The bullets tore through, but the creature didn't even flinch.
"Nothing's stopping it!" she screamed.
Reaper grit his teeth, yanking a molotov from his belt.
"Let's see it regenerate from fire."
With a flick of his lighter, the bottle ignited.
The flames exploded on impact, consuming the Flesh Reaper's upper body in a storm of fire. The heat was blinding, the smell of burning flesh suffocating.
It screeched—a howl of agony.
For a brief moment, it staggered.
Leon saw an opening. "Light it up!"
The team opened fire, unloading every bullet they had. Flames ate away at its skin, bullets shredded its muscle. It stumbled—slamming its claws into the concrete to stay upright.
And then, they saw it.
The flames weren't spreading.
The wounds weren't deep enough.
Before their eyes, its charred flesh began twisting, forming a protective layer over its body. It was using the damage to make itself stronger.
Leon's stomach twisted. "Oh, hell."
The Flesh Reaper's mouth split into a shark-like grin.
Reaper tackled Evelyn aside just as the creature's claw swept through the space where she stood. The force shattered a nearby car.
Lucas aimed for the knees, trying to slow it down. The bullets connected—but the creature just kept coming.
"Nothing's working!" Mia gasped, stepping back.
Evelyn's mind raced. They couldn't kill it. Not conventionally.
But they could bury it.
Her eyes darted toward the half-ruined parking garage just ahead. "We drop a building on it."
Leon followed her gaze and grinned. "That's insane."
"Not one that keeps us alive."
They sprinted toward the garage, the Flesh Reaper in relentless pursuit. Its claws scraped against the asphalt as it ran, saliva dripping from its fanged maw.
Lucas reached the structural beams first, planting explosives from his satchel.
The monster was seconds away.
Leon turned, pulling his last detonator.
"Come on, you ugly freak," he growled.
The Flesh Reaper lunged—
Leon pressed the trigger.
The entire parking garage collapsed, tons of concrete swallowing the monster whole.
The team stood there, panting.
Beneath the rubble, something moved.