The Gobzkin horde lived by a brutal, rigid hierarchy where strength and cruelty reigned supreme. The strongest claimed the best scrap, the freshest meat, and the most females. This system was thought to harden generations of gobzkins through the genetics of the fittest. Yet, Professor Hendrick's observations suggested this brutal selection was a desperate, failing attempt to outrun something dark at the core of the Gobzkin nature.
Using his limited equipment, he carefully collected blood samples from numerous Gobs, noting subtle but widespread physical anomalies and cellular irregularities. His goal was clear: unravel their biology, determine their lifespan, what makes them tick, what makes them cease to function, and find a weakness to use against them. If these monsters had physiologies that align with what is known on Earth, maybe it would be possible to eradicate them with biological weapons or a man-made virus.
However, what the professor found was a race on the brink of biological collapse, yet paradoxically enduring. The Gobs were highly susceptible to disease, their immune systems fragile, and their average lifespan a mere 5 to 10 years, if they even survived their brutal early years.
Hobgob blood samples, though far rarer, showed a stark contrast. Their cellular structures appeared more robust, with fewer degenerative markers than Gobs. These individuals also showed much greater resilience, adapting to environmental hazards and resisting illnesses surprisingly well.
Yet, a peculiar, almost desperate, adaptability ran through the Gobzkin lineage as a whole. When faced with imminent biological threat—such as a severe injury, a virulent infection, or extreme environmental shifts—their bodies didn't regenerate or undergo a fantastical metamorphosis. Instead, their internal systems would initiate rapid, crude shifts in their physiology. Metabolic pathways rerouted, enzyme production surged erratically, and cellular functions reprioritized, all in a frantic and inefficient attempt to sustain basic life functions.
It was a biological "patch-job," a desperate, short-term survival mechanism that often left the organism even more depleted and damaged.
This wasn't evolution; it was frantic, maladaptive plasticity. Younger Gobs, despite their initial vigor from brutal selection, carried the same genetic burden, exhibiting both crude adaptability and more pronounced cellular degradation than their older caste members.
Given the widespread cellular deformities and genetic fragility, Professor Hendrick's only logical conclusion was that the Gobzkin race in general was severely inbred.
The Gobzkin population suffered from an extreme lack of genetic diversity; even their "successful" pairings produced offspring riddled with inherent weaknesses. Hobgobs, by contrast, showed far fewer of these markers, suggesting a different, perhaps more diverse, genetic origin. This baffling paradox: a race simultaneously surviving through desperate physiological shifts yet relentlessly degrading, pointed to a deeper mystery, one tied to the secrets of the Rift and the horrors it unleashed.
When asked, the Alfari envoy, Kahori, spoke of things far more mysterious than what the professor could put under a microscope, yet he listened intently.
"The Gobzkin are worshipers of the Rift Gods, beings that inhabit different depths of the Rift into which not even the Elden Kings would venture. Those Gods are maleficent, chaotic, and ruinous. They always find ways to cause harm and enslave the unfortunate races that were dragged into the Rift as their worlds were completely overrun. Whatever corruption you find in their blood is the work of the maleficent God of the Gobzkin."
Upon hearing such an answer, the professor feared for the rest of humanity and prayed in his heart, despite being an atheist, for any savior to emerge and save this world from the fate of the Gobzkin. No matter what kind of force plotted for this systematic and cruel invasion of this world, it would lay waste to the rest of humanity in ways as cruel as it had happened to the Gobzkin, if not far worse.
After all, this is humanity's original sin; the brutality they inflicted on each other for so long was now reflected on them, and they paid such a hefty and cruel price. Yet, the professor still hoped for the fates to spare his people while they could still rise and rebuild.
The professor's thoughts kept getting darker with the setting of the sun, its light fading as the darkness of night swept over the world with its starry shroud.
Too many fears and concerns plagued the mind of the old man, but most pressing of all was the whereabouts of Thomas Dorsett, Megan's brother, whom he had sworn to his sister he would protect.
While generally respectful of authority, Tommy had the volatile mood swings of a teenager, shrouding his judgment and preventing him from seeing things objectively. The professor tried to remedy that, but with Adam's arrival to search for Megan, it surely must have driven young Tommy to join the search.
There was little to no chance of survival out there after all this time; at least Ivan would know that and would steer Adam and his group of militant aliens away from the dangers of the city.
So far, 18 hours have passed, and the professor stood with the night shift, trying to clear his head with the cold night air, as he had slept during the day. He looked up at the starry sky, clearer than ever before—a sign of the world healing from all the pollution and filth that once suffocated it.
A world this quiet and dark had its own peaceful moments like these. The professor closed his eyes and breathed in, the cold air scratching against his aged throat, almost provoking a cough, but as he cleared his throat and swallowed his saliva, his moment of peace was disturbed by two bright lights in the dark road ahead of the factory building.
The professor's heart tightened from the sight of car front lights. But a few seconds later, relief washed over his heart as the car coming this way started to emit a pattern of familiar blinks and signals.
"Ivan is back, Professor!" Running to him on the balcony, Candice said with excitement.
The professor's gaze fell flat as the vehicles approached. Three of them, to be exact, which was one more vehicle than the group had left with.
Something must have happened.
The professor went downstairs immediately, followed by the many eyes of the survivors, tracing his every motion and step. Some murmur in doubt, while others show understanding. After the moment two groups of aliens were revealed to be frequenting the shelter, the professor's reputation was a topic of hot debate among the 200 survivors, and the lack of transparency revealed to the camp started to weigh on morale.
Still, the man kept walking to the front gate of the factory, where his students were gathered to open the doors for the three cars parked outside. Once Ivan descended from his truck, the professor was already relieved.
What followed was an influx of individuals from the three vehicles. From the van, Tommy jumped down first while he was speaking excitedly with the alien human who was carrying a giant radio over his back, as it seemed the two had hit it off. The rest of the group walked down: Elena from the driver's seat, Kave from the passenger's seat, and finally Adam and Megan, whose arrival shocked the professor and made him walk with wide strides towards his favorite student.
"Ms. Dorset!"
"Professor!"
Megan, who was smiling at Adam, ran from his side and hugged her professor, whom she was close to. The rest of the students behind the professor started running to greet Megan and her group, but to their utter surprise, only Toby, Qasim, and the unconscious Sarah were the survivors who came in the police truck.
The other shock was the state of Ivan's eight-man team: half of its members had suffered severe injuries. Ivan and the others were helping the injured down, and they were joined by Sharp, Hammerhead, and Biscuits, who assumed command as the only medic around.
The professor asked what had happened with a shaken voice. Megan replied faintly with the short version of the three days that had gone horribly wrong.
Adam also stepped forward, shaking hands with the professor and asking on behalf of his men to stay the night before they move back to their base the next day. The professor had no qualms about it; rather, he was very welcoming of Adam and his militant friends, but he shifted his attention to the tragic losses of his students, helping wherever he could.
Everyone was moved to the field hospital in the middle of the shelter, eyes scanning them from both sides. Children hid behind corners from the armed strangers and from the people with grievous wounds, whom the elders told them not to look at.
Just like them, the Wartopians also scanned the shelter with their eyes, wary of other aliens like the ones they had met before, but it seemed there was no need for such a concern now.
With the injured delivered, everything started to settle down: the cars parked inside, the weapons put away safely, and the heavy clothes taken off in this populated and warm interior.
As he was organizing things with his troops, Adam kept glancing at Megan, who glanced back at him every now and then, while getting her injuries looked at by a nurse and still yelling at Tommy for following Adam's group out.
After they met on the rooftop, their surroundings left them a mere minute to hold each other, get closer, and feel each other's warmth, but right before they could share their cinematic kiss, Buzz started calling Kave, telling him to bring the cars over, and Megan heard Tommy's voice over the radio, sending her into a fit despite the sweet words she had exchanged with Adam.
When Kave arrived with the van, he was confronted by an angry Megan, who marched towards him with such a fierce glare that he retreated into the van instead of greeting her. She then turned to the back of the van, caught Tommy, and gave him an earful.
With premises secured, the injured were put into Ivan's car. Officer Reeves was convinced by Adam to tag along, now that his fortified church was difficult to defend on his own, which he agreed to only when Qasim and Toby kept nagging him. Finally, the group buried Justin in the church's cemetery, prayed for his soul, and took Sarah to Adam's van.
While the journey took time to reach here, Adam and Megan only hugged each other, locking eyes through the trip, and spoke with each other about their lives apart, enough to make Tommy cringe and become best friends with Buzz.
With the day's duties finally over, a precious opportunity presented itself for them to unite. Adam navigated the busy communal space, his gaze finding her perched on a makeshift cot in a corner of her own. Patched curtains were strung haphazardly, offering a fragile sense of privacy between their corner and the camp's prying eyes. He settled beside her, the cot creaking softly under his weight, his presence a silent comfort. Almost immediately, her head found its familiar resting place on his left shoulder.
He smiled, wrapped his arm around her back, feeling her warm body, holding her soft arm with his other hand, not wanting to ever let go.
"I was…"
"We should…"
The two spoke at the same time and swallowed their words simultaneously, turning to each other with similar smiles, nothing awkward, but a sense of reconsideration for the other person whom they held dearest.
"You go first," Adam said.
Megan smiled, her eyes looking away, as the thought that crossed her mind was probably not innocent. Because of that, she changed what she was going to say.
"You stink, Adam." She said, giggling, not understanding why she had to say it like that.
"Alright."
Adam retracted his arm and straightened his back, but she snuggled even closer to his side, looking at him with amused eyes, while internally, she was trying to stab her own brain for that choice of words.
"So, you're saying I should take a shower?" Adam asked after reactivating the Megan translator plugin, which he had downloaded some years back.
"See. You didn't make me beg." She rested back, but her smile still hung.
"We should take a shower, is more what you meant," he said, pointing at her, as he finally caught up to her naughty thoughts.
"I didn't…" Megan wanted to deny it, but she closed her eyes, giggled twice, and admitted, "… I fucking miss you."
Hearing her, Adam's body leaned forward, knowing exactly the line he always said whenever she said that. He turned and, with a smile:
"I miss fucking you."
"Alright, you asked, I accept." Megan immediately gave him a shameless approval, as her eyes turned naughty. "There's a bath area at the back of the factory; hot water isn't an option, though."
Adam shrugged and, with total confidence, he replied, "Don't worry! I'll still get hard."
"Oh…" Megan leaned in, smiling sweetly, before catching his hand and pulling him after her. "Challenge accepted."
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