The night air was thick with the scent of burnt flesh and rot. The survivors had run for miles, but the Titan's roar still echoed behind them—a reminder that their fight wasn't over.
Mia stumbled, her breath ragged. "Tell me we have a plan," she gasped, gripping her pistol like it was the only thing keeping her alive.
Reaper reloaded his shotgun, eyes scanning the ruined street. "Yeah. Don't die."
Evelyn ignored the banter, staring at the horizon ahead. A familiar silhouette loomed in the distance—an abandoned military checkpoint. She turned to the group. "That's our best bet. Fortified, stocked—if we're lucky, we might even find weapons."
Leon groaned as he clutched his side. "And if we're not?"
"Then we're dead either way," Lucas muttered.
They moved quickly, the ruins of the city eerily quiet. Too quiet. It wasn't just the Titan that worried Evelyn—it was the absence of lesser infected. The streets, usually crawling with flesh-hungry horrors, were empty.
Something wasn't right.
As they reached the checkpoint, the metal gate hung open, its security fence torn apart like paper. Blood stained the walls, but there were no bodies.
Reaper took point, stepping inside with his shotgun raised. "This doesn't feel like a win."
A wet, slithering sound.
Evelyn's stomach twisted. "We're not alone."
The first tendril struck from the ceiling.
Mia barely dodged as a sickly, elongated limb lashed down, embedding itself into the concrete. It retracted with a sickening squelch, and from the shadows, they emerged.
Twisted remnants of humanity, their bodies fused with the Devourer's parasitic infection. Their spines were exposed, their fingers stretched into grotesque claws. But it was their faces that were the worst— jawless, split down the middle, pulsing with unnatural hunger.
"Run or fight?" Lucas asked, already pulling his rifle up.
Reaper cocked his shotgun. "Both."
The Swarmborn lunged.
Leon swung his machete, hacking through one's throat. The creature barely reacted, gurgling as it tore at him. Evelyn fired two shots, aiming for their mutated skulls—but they kept coming.
The Titan had found them.
It burst through the ruins, its body twisted with rage and hunger. One of its arms still dangled uselessly, but that didn't slow it down. It charged the checkpoint, crushing Swarmborn beneath its weight.
Mia screamed. "We're trapped!"
Lucas pointed to an underground entrance, barely visible behind debris. "There! MOVE!"
The survivors sprinted for the hatch as the Titan and Swarmborn clashed behind them.
The ground shook violently. The last thing Evelyn saw before diving into the darkness was the Titan's burning red eyes locking onto her.
This was only the beginning.