The words hung in the air like a heavy fog. No one answered.
And the steady, dull thumps of corrupted bodies slamming into the sealed door behind them.
The sound wasn’t loud—but it was constant. Unrelenting. Each impact made the walls vibrate slightly.
A reminder that death was still just one car away.
Some passengers wept quietly. Others stared blankly, their minds far away. It felt like the whole car was holding its breath.
Waiting, hoping, for someone to say something that made sense. Something that gave them a reason to believe they would make it out alive.
But the train wasn’t moving anymore.
It had stopped after the explosion that shook the tracks earlier.
Kyle stood near the center of the car, gripping the hilt of Zalrielle—his tachi. His knuckles were white around the handle.
He hated this feeling.
Finally, the mercenary with the broadsword—Brock, spoke. He was leaning against a Read the latest chapters on NovelHub - completely free!
"We don’t have many options," he said, voice low and tired.
"There’s no way forward. That next car is completely overrun. Full of corrupted. If we try to push through. We’ll be torn apart."
The other mercenary—Aaron. The one with the axe and shield, glanced at the door behind them. The one the corrupted were still attacking.
"And going back?" he asked.
"Same problem," Brock replied. "The ones behind us haven’t stopped. If that door gives out... it’s over."
As if on cue. Another loud slam echoed through the car. The metal groaned, and a few people jumped in fear. A little girl whimpered and clung to her mother’s side.
Aaron frowned. "The station should have noticed the train’s stopped by now. But who knows how long it’ll take them to react. And even then. They’ll probably just send engineers... maybe a couple of low-level awakened guards."
"That won’t be enough," Brock muttered.
Aaron nodded. "No. We would need mid-rank awakened at least. Maybe even a high-level one to deal with all the corrupted."
Someone sitting near the center of the car whispered, "So what? We just sit here and wait to die?"
Aaron shook his head. "No... there might be a way."
Everyone turned toward him.
He stepped forward and pointed down the length of the train, toward the far end.
"There’s a cargo car. A few cars past the one that’s overrun. I’ve seen it before. It has a control console. One of those emergency systems that might still work."
"If we can reach it. We could send a proper distress signal. One that’ll reach central command, not just the local station."
There was a long pause.
"Wait," someone said. "You mean we would have to go through the corrupted?"
Aaron nodded. "Two cars full. Maybe more."
The same voice muttered, "That’s a death sentence..."
Then Kyle stepped forward, eyes steady, voice clear. "We have to do it."
He looked at the mercenaries, then at the frightened passengers.
"If we stay here and do nothing, that door will eventually break. No one’s coming to save us unless we make contact first."
"We don’t all need to go. Just a small group. Fast. Focused. The rest can stay here and protect the civilians."
The moment he spoke. Eleanora stepped beside him. "So will I."
She didn’t hesitate. Her pale blonde hair was messy from the earlier fight. Her clothes torn and stained, but her eyes were focused.
Reo stood slowly, leaning on his spear. He gave a firm nod. "Count me in too."
Aaron looked between them. Three young students, still bruised and tired, but standing tall.
He sighed. "Damn it... Can’t leave this kind of job to kids."
He turned to Brock. "I will go with them."
Brock crossed his arms, his jaw tight. "You sure?"
Aaron nodded. "You stay here. Protect the others."
Brock’s eyes swept over the civilians. Some were crying, some praying, others just watching silently.
He gave a short nod. "Fine. I’ll hold this car. I’ll buy you as much time as I can."
Kyle looked at Eleanora. Then Reo. Then Aaron.
"All right," he said quietly.
"Let’s move," Kyle said.
His voice wasn’t loud, but it cut through the silence like a blade.
He tightened his grip on Zalrielle. The familiar weight of the tachi grounding him.
Eleanora gave a short nod and stepped forward. She adjusted her grip on her estoc. The thin blade still stained from the last kill.
Her eyes didn’t waver. There was no fear in them, just quiet resolve.
Reo took one last breath and followed, limping slightly as he moved to their side. He glanced at the others, then gave a crooked smile.
"Guess this is what we are doing now, huh?"
Kyle gave him a small nod. "You sure you’re good?"
Reo twirled his spear once, then rested it against his shoulder. "Not really. But let’s go anyway."
Behind them. The passengers watched in silence. Some clung to loved ones. Some whispered quiet prayers.
Aaron joined them. Checking the edge of his axe and tightening the straps on his shield. He was quiet for a moment, then looked at the three students.
"We move fast. No second-guessing. We clear each car or push through. Whatever gets us there alive. Got it?"
Eleanora and Reo nodded too.
Aaron glanced back one last time. Brock stood near the entrance, arms crossed, jaw clenched.
"Don’t get yourselves killed," Brock said gruffly.
"We’ll try not to," Aaron replied.
The four of them moved toward the next door—toward the car full of corrupted.
Every step felt heavier than the last. The air was thick with tension.
The sounds of metal creaking, the thumps from behind, the quiet sobs of the civilians—all of it pressed down on them like a weight.
Kyle reached for the door mechanism. His hand hovered over it for a moment.
As the door slid open with a hiss. The darkness on the other side felt alive. Thick, heavy, and waiting.
They rushed forward without warning. Twisted shapes that barely looked human. Their skin was pale and stretched, veins black and bulging under the surface.
Their eyes glowed faint red in the dim light, locked on their prey.
And they moved fast. Too fast.
Before anyone could speak or react, two of them were already flying through the air.
Aaron was the first to step up. He raised his shield just in time. The corrupted slammed into it with bone-cracking force, sending a sharp jolt through his arm. He gritted his teeth but didn’t back down.
With a roar, he shoved them off, sending one crashing into the metal wall with a loud thud.
"Move!" he shouted, already pushing forward.
Eleanora raised her hand. From her fingers, thick strands of darkness whipped out like ropes.
They wrapped around the nearest corrupted, locking its limbs in place. The creature growled and struggled, but the shadows held firm.
Kyle stood beside her. His hand lit up with cold, blue light.
He thrust it forward.
A wave of frost blasted out, coating the floor and the trapped monster in thick ice. The corrupted froze in place, its body stiff and unmoving.
Kyle didn’t waste time. He ran, jumping over the frozen corpse without slowing down.
Reo followed close behind, the wind swirling around his legs. It lifted him, helped him move faster.
He spun his spear in a quick arc, and a strong gust of air knocked back two more corrupted trying to cut them off.
They didn’t stop to fight.
They had to keep going.
Aaron led the charge, smashing anything that got in their way with his shield. Each blow cleared a path. Eleanora moved like a dancer in a storm, her estoc stabbing cleanly and her darkness blocking attacks from all sides.
Kyle focused on freezing the ground beneath the corrupted, making them slip and fall. His tachi sliced down any that came too close, sparks of lightning dancing off the blade with each strike. He was faster now. More focused.
Reo stayed close to the rear, using bursts of wind to knock enemies away and give the group space to breathe. His spear moved fast and smooth, always in motion.
The corrupted came from everywhere—crawling from under broken seats, falling from holes in the ceiling, lunging from the shadows—but the group pushed forward together.
They burst through the second car.
It was darker than the others. The hallway was tight. The lights flickering or broken completely.
Wires hung from the ceiling. Metal panels had fallen loose. Blood smeared the walls—thick, dark, fresh. The floor was worse. Bodies lay everywhere.
The air was hot and foul. Every breath felt like swallowing smoke and rot. The stench of blood, sweat, and mana was thick enough to make their stomachs turn.
But they were starting to bleed again.
Nothing serious yet, but it was adding up.
Kyle had a deep gash across his shoulder where a claw had slipped past his guard.
Eleanora’s stomach had a slash, the blood trickling down.
Reo was limping slightly, his ribs bruised from being slammed into a seat. Even Aaron looked shaken. His shield was cracked, and blood dripped from a cut on his lip.
Still, they didn’t stop.
They kept moving until they reached the last door. The one that led to the cargo car.
On the other side of the glass door. The car was crawling with corrupted.
More than they had seen in any other part of the train.
Some were crawling across the ceiling, claws digging into the metal. Others paced like animals, twitching and jerking with every movement.
They were muttering, snarling, tearing at the floor, the walls, each other.
And then. The door made a noise.
The corrupted turned.
Dozens of glowing red eyes stared directly at them.
It was like stepping into a nightmare. A nest. A trap.
Aaron cursed under his breath. "There’s too many..."
Eleanora raised her estoc slowly, her grip tightening. "We can’t take all of them."
Kyle stared through the glass, his heart pounding, his breath slow.
"We don’t need to," he said, stepping closer. "We just need to get through. The next car. The cargo section. That’s where the controls are. That’s where the distress beacon is."
The corrupted hadn’t moved yet, but they would. Soon.
Kyle’s hand clenched around his tachi. Zalrielle pulsed in his grip, lightning crackling faintly along its edge.
He turned, looking at the others.
Aaron. Eleanora. Reo.
None of them spoke. None of them backed down.
There was no fear. Only determination.
"All right," he said softly.