The dust hadn't even settled.
Chunks of twisted rebar and crushed concrete littered the street, a graveyard of destruction. And yet, they knew it wasn't over.
Leon's hands tightened around his rifle, sweat dripping down his brow. "Tell me it's dead this time."
Beneath the rubble, a deep, wet crunching sound echoed—a bone-grinding, flesh-reforming symphony of horror.
Then, the ground shifted.
Lucas stepped back. "No. No way."
A massive clawed hand burst free, shredding through concrete like paper. Another followed. Then, with a monstrous roar, the Flesh Reaper erupted from the debris, its sinewy form larger, stronger, mutated.
The fire hadn't weakened it. The explosion hadn't buried it. They had only helped it evolve.
"RUN!" Evelyn screamed.
The Flesh Reaper lunged, moving faster than before. Its barbed tongue shot out, nearly impaling Mia as she dived away.
Reaper fired his shotgun point-blank into its head.
The blast tore through its skull—but in seconds, the flesh re-knitted, the hole sealing shut. The creature only grinned, a grotesque, lipless stretch of fangs.
Bullets wouldn't stop it. Fire wouldn't stop it.
Lucas cursed. "What the hell do we do?!"
Evelyn's mind raced. There had to be a weakness. If it was evolving, what was it evolving from?
She squinted at the beast's shifting flesh. Every wound it had taken—burns, bullet holes, crushed limbs—had merged into a new form. A tougher one. But its exposed brain tissue on the top of its head remained unarmored.
Evelyn grabbed Leon's arm. "We need to hit its brain—with everything."
Leon followed her gaze and grinned. "Now you're talking."
Reaper yanked a high-explosive grenade from his belt. "I can get close."
Mia shook her head. "You'll never make it."
Without waiting for an argument, Reaper charged.
The Flesh Reaper snarled, locking onto him. Its tongue lashed out, razor-sharp. Reaper barely dodged, rolling under its massive claw as it swiped.
Lucas and Mia unloaded their guns into its legs, slowing it down. Leon followed, aiming for the joints. The creature staggered, just for a second.
Reaper leaped, climbing onto its back. The monster roared, twisting, trying to shake him off.
With a growl, Reaper slammed the grenade against its exposed brain—yanking the pin at the last second.
The detonation split the Flesh Reaper's skull open, chunks of its brain matter vaporized.
It staggered—collapsing.
Evelyn held her breath. Then, at last...
The Flesh Reaper stopped moving.