“Good grief…” Colt muttered. “Things just can't be simple for once, can they?”
The creatures were slow in their approach, but not as if they were sizing us up. There was something peculiar about the way that they moved. Not quite like predators hunting prey. More like a drone approaching its target. Their movements seemed calculated. Methodical. Almost Robotic.
“You said no aliens,” one of the Spetsnaz yelled out from the back. “So what the hell is this?”
“This doesn’t change much,” Colt said. “These things are still here to kill you guys and we’re here to stop them.”
The creatures continued advancing at a steady pace. I looked back at our rifles, which were laid out on the tables. No matter how strong I’d become, the last thing I wanted to do was fight these things with my bare hands.
“SHIT!!!”
I turned back around, seeing that the creatures had begun charging. I clenched my fists. It didn’t really look like I had a choice.
I stepped forward as one of them lunged at me. I could only comprehend just how massive the thing was once I got up close to it. Not only did it tower over me, its body was well over ten feet long.
I twisted my hips and punched its head. It certainly did some damage, but at the cost of my knuckles shattering. A few seconds into the fight and I was already in deep shit.
I jumped back due to the pain, but the creature just kept charging. It raised its stinger, and I was ill-prepared to block it. It stabbed me in arm, not quite penetrating my skin. Still hurt like hell, though. I could see something dripping out of the tip as the creature pulled the stinger back. Some kind of dark-green fluid.
I rushed forward and tried putting the creature into a standing choke before it could strike again.
It didn’t work. The creature slammed me in the abdomen with one of its arms, sending me backwards and leaving me breathless.
“Fuck this…” I muttered. I pulled myself up and rushed over towards one of the rifles. I aimed the barrel at the creature’s head and began spraying.
Even though just about every bullet hit dead-on, the abomination still wouldn’t go down. Its head would snap back slightly with every impact, as bits of its skin and flesh exploded. Dark-colored blood spilled to the floor as it continued pressing forward, seemingly unbothered by the injuries.
I cursed again and reloaded, before once again emptying the entire magazine into its face. It finally dropped this time. Even then, it still wasn’t fully dead, jerking and writhing around on the floor.
I clutched the rifle like a bat and slammed it into the back of the creature’s head until it broke.
That finally managed to finish it off for good.
The adrenaline rush was so intense that it took me a second to notice it.
There was something sticking out of the creature's flesh.
I approached the “corpse” cautiously in order to get a closer look. I wasn’t seeing things. Buried within the bone, cartilage and tissue appeared to be wires. As if it were some type of robot.
Before I could inspect any further, another of these things lunged at me. I leapt back, before gauging the situation around me. I spotted Colt fighting off two of the creatures at once bare-handed. There were four more lying limp around him. The guy was a monster himself.
However… the rest of us weren’t doing so well. Luke was trying his hardest not to get pummeled while Armin was thrashing on the floor, trying not to be strangled.
Strangulation. I wouldn’t have expected these kinds of creatures to resort to something like that.
Everybody else was facing a similar struggle. The only one holding their own was Colt.
But there was also somebody missing. Somebody I couldn’t immediately spot.
“Looking for something?” A voice said from behind me.
I turned around, seeing Visser with a wicked grin on his face.
“Visser? What the hell-“
He interrupted by punching me hard in the throat. I began gasping for air as I fell to my knees. I looked up, watching as he casually strolled away, before walking up to Luke and unceremoniously breaking his arm.
I tried standing up, but ended up getting knocked back down by one of the creatures. I could hardly fight back as it wrapped its massive hands around my throat, simultaneously drilling its stinger into my leg. This time, it managed to break my skin. What it was trying to do wasn’t a mystery. It was injecting the necrotic agent into my veins.
To my surprise, it let go of my throat before I passed out completely. In retrospect, it made sense. These things were probably programmed to move on after the injection was completed.
I sat up, struggling to funnel air into my lungs. I looked around again, watching as Visser effortlessly subdued the rest of our team. At the same time, the creatures seemed to be completely ignoring him.
Eventually, he made his way over to Colt, who was still had his hands full with multiple creatures. Colt screamed something at him, but I couldn’t hear what he said. Visser responded by punching him in the face.
Compared to the rest of us, it took him a little longer to take down Colt, but he still managed to do it without breaking much of a sweat. It also didn’t help that Colt was being tag-teamed by the creatures.
With our team entirely down for the count, the creatures turned their attention towards the Spetsnaz, who’d been witnessing the entire ordeal at the back.
These guys were done for, I thought to myself.
Fighting these creatures was a hellish experience, even with the serum. I could only imagine facing them in my normal state. It’d be a complete and utter slaughter.
However...
The Spetsnaz didn’t seem worried at all. There was no fear in their expressions. Their faces were stone, as if a gang of mere hooligans were standing in front of them.
Some raised their rifles. Some grabbed their knives. Despite the impossible odds, they were still going to fight.
The lead Spetsnaz stepped forward, before shouting something in Russian.
And then they charged.
As expected, it was a short, brutal struggle. I looked back at Visser. He appeared to be recording the entire thing, keeping only the Russians and the creatures in frame.
Even though he only managed to capture a few seconds of footage at most, he took off right after. I suppose he got what he came for.
It was shocking just how horribly the plan had gone. The Spetsnaz we were supposed to protect were all dead. Half of our team was knocked out cold, while the rest were injured. Not only that… Visser had apparently set everything up. A mole amongst moles. I could only imagine what was waiting for us next.
The creatures had become stationary after finishing off the Russians. The details were all starting to align. These things were just machines made to look like biological entities. These were fake aliens.
I could see Colt slowly pulling himself up, as blood leaked from his nose and a large gash on his forehead.
“Where’d... Visser go?” He asked, spitting out blood.
“He took off,” I responded. “After recording everything.”
Colt’s eyes turned wide, before he suddenly bolted up. “That fucker can't get away.” He said, before sprinting back down the corridor like a bat out of hell.
Everybody else was too roughed up to follow after him.
But I wasn’t.
My right fist was broken, but that was about the extent of my problems. I started running after Visser as well. We made it out of the underground complex and back into the woods, where we could see a trail of fresh footprints in the snow. We tracked his trail for about five minutes before finally catching up to him. He didn't seem too alarmed. In fact, it looked like he was just taking a casual stroll through the woods.
Colt wasn't about to waste time asking any questions, immediately charging at him like a bull. He tried taking Visser down, but was met with an abrupt knee to the face instead. I tried running at Visser as well, but was knocked down before I could even lift my arms. It happened so quick that I’m not even sure what kind of move he pulled on me. In any case, I wasn’t getting back up. It felt like my liver had just burst open.
Colt wasn’t done yet, though. With blood pouring from his mouth, nose and eyes, he lifted himself up and started advancing towards Visser once again. What happened next was a one-sided beatdown. Colt must’ve thrown over fifty strikes, with only a couple landing. Even the ones that hit didn’t seem to faze Visser in the slightest. He just shrugged everything off.
Visser grabbed by the arm and delivered a rib-shattering kick, which Colt back down to the ground.
We were both done for. Visser just looked at both of us and sighed.
“Commendable effort,” he said. “You boys aren’t giving up on the mission. I can respect it.”
He leered over Colt.
“But that also means it’d be dumb as fuck if I let you live.”
Visser gripped Colt’s throat and squeezed.
“You’re a… rat fucking… bastard.” Colt rasped out, as the air slowly vacated his lungs.
“Yeah, yeah…” Visser said, nodding. “It is what it is.”
I wanted to pummel Visser right then and there with every fiber of my being. But I couldn’t. I could only crawl towards them at a futile pace.
“I’ll get to you next, buddy. Don’t you worry.” He said, grinning smugly at me.
Colt stopped struggling after about ten seconds.
“There you go,” Visser said, almost in a whisper. “Night, night.”
Then he turned his attention to me.
If you told me ten years ago that this is how I’d die, I’d probably laugh in your face. If you told me the same thing one year ago… well that’s a different story. At the end of the day, I had nobody to blame but myself. I never could go down the normal route. No matter how much the people in my life pleaded. No matter how much worry I caused them. I only ever wanted to live for myself. I still don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. But I suppose things could've been different. Could've been better.
Your thoughts race when death is lurking right in front of you. I don’t know if time was slowing down in my mind or if Visser was just taking his sweet time walking over. But I had a lot of time to think. A lot of time to regret.
I sighed and closed my eyes. I never really believed in reincarnation, but at that moment I tried. I just that I’d do better in my next life.
I was waiting for him to kill me. And I kept waiting. But… it wasn’t happening. Eventually I opened my eyes. Visser was standing only a few feet away from me, but his attention was focused elsewhere.
I followed his gaze, spotting Luke standing at the edge of a clearing behind us. One of his arms was completely mangled (thanks to Visser), and he was bleeding profusely from a wound on his cheek. Despite that, he was still there, holding a pistol.
Visser looked perplexed at the sight. I can’t say I would’ve reacted differently. I couldn't comprehend what Luke was trying to do.
“Didn’t I just kick your ass?” Visser said. “And now you’re here, pointing that pea-shooter at me. I mean, I get it. I'm just as dedicated as the next guy. But this is getting ridiculous."
Luke just grinned. “I didn’t want to waste this on you… but I’m kind of glad that I get to.”
He fired the weapon, hitting Visser in the chest. But not with a normal bullet. The projectile was some kind of liquid-filled capsule, staining Visser's clothes and neck as it exploded upon impact.
Visser looked at Luke, the smugness in his expression replace with genuine concern.
"What the fuck was that?" He asked.
"Try kicking my ass now motherfucker." Luke responded.
Visser's face contorted into a grimace as he stepped forward. But he couldn't even make it a few yards before collapsing. He went into a violent coughing fit as blood burst from his mouth.
"God... damn.." He muttered.
"My father once said that no matter what you have..." Luke began. "It can still be taken away in a heartbeat. I never doubted him."
He looked at me, tossing me a pair of handcuffs.
"Do me a favor and restrain him for me," Luke said, as his injured arm dangled gruesomely to the side. "I'm a bit fucked up right now. No rush, though. He's not going anywhere."
I looked at Visser, who was still writhing and coughing up blood on the ground. I looked over at Colt, still lying limp beside him. I was seconds away from sharing the same fate. Maybe I had. Maybe I'd really been strangled lifeless, and this was just some posthumous hallucination.
But... I don't think the dead could feel as pissed off as I did in that moment.
"What happens next?" I asked Luke.
He shook his head. "I don't know for sure. But I think things are about to start moving quick."
---
Credits
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