The wristband on Gray's arm flashed white.
His heart sank like a stone dropped into a well.
He barely dared to breathe.
The words of the stranger echoed in his mind, cold and sharp: If it flashes white, it's picked up something unusual.
Gray swallowed hard, the dryness in his throat making the motion scratchy and uneven. His heartbeat hammered in his ears as he tried desperately to convince himself what he'd seen earlier was nothing more than a trick of the fog, a figment born from exhaustion and hunger. His body ached, his legs trembling beneath him. The haze of weariness clouded his thoughts, blurring the line between reality and nightmare.
Maybe it wasn't real.
The hovercraft came to a sudden halt.
The jolt slammed him hard against the cold, metal wall, the impact wrenching the breath from his lungs and stabbing sharp pain into his ribs. He gasped, clutching his side, heart racing.
This wasn't right.
They weren't near the checkpoint yet. The area was supposed to be mostly clear with little threats and danger. Yet, here they were, stopped abruptly in the middle of nowhere.
Gray scrambled forward, urgency propelling him toward the front cabin. The kid beside him, rocked gently on his seat, clutching his head and shaking like a frightened animal.
Gray ignored him, yanking open the cabin door.
Inside, the driver sat slumped, completely still.
Gray's voice shook as he stepped closer.
"Hey… why did we stop? Did we—"
His words caught in his throat.
The man's hands were rigid, frozen in place on the controls. Blood trickled down from his ears, tiny crimson rivulets staining his collar.
Gray's breath hitched as he leaned in.
The driver's eyes were gone.
Black, empty sockets stared back at him. His eyes hollow. His throat was shredded open, skin peeled back in ragged strips like dried parchment. But there was no blood flowing from the wound. It looked as if something had drained it all, sucked the life right out of him.
Gray stumbled back, panic flooding his veins. His legs gave way and he collapsed to the floor, crawling backward, cold sweat pouring down his spine. His breath came in shallow, ragged gasps, each inhale a desperate attempt to steady his shaking hands.
His mind spun, chaos breaking through the fog of exhaustion.
What could have done this?
No one else had heard a sound.
Behind him, Lyleen moved quietly. She didn't hesitate. Her steps were measured, calm. She strode to the weapons rack and pulled two knives free, their blades catching the dim light as she turned toward the rear door.
The burly man who'd been fiddling with the controls. He cursed under his breath and slammed his fist against the console.
"The controls are fried," he growled. "Nothing's working."
He turned to Lyleen with a grim expression.
"What now?"
Gray blinked, confused.
Lyleen and and the man knew each other?
That didn't matter.
He forced himself to stand, swallowing the lump in his throat.
"What are you doing?" Gray demanded, voice hoarse. "You can't just go out there. We don't know what's out there."
She spun toward him, eyes cold as steel.
"Do you really think someone's coming to save us?" Her voice cut like a blade through the tense air. "We are cannon fodder. Replaceable. You wait in here, you die waiting."
Her words froze the room.
Gray bit his lip, staring down at the weapons rack.
Swords. Knives. Spears. Guns without ammo.
'Damn it all' Gray cursed under his breath.
He reached out and picked up a sword, the metal cool and surprisingly light in his hands. He barely knew how to hold it properly.
The young boy shuffled forward, mirroring him, gripping a short spear clumsily.
Then the ramp groaned open.
A cold wind spilled into the cabin, carrying with it the scent of ash and something sour, like burnt flesh.
Fog spun around their feet as they stepped outside.
Before them lay a road made of compacted ash. It stretched ahead like a scar across the land. Purple trees lined the edges, their gnarled roots twisting like veins across the barren ground. The entire landscape seemed soaked in a violet hue. The sky, the soil, even the jagged rocks scattered along the roadside.
It looked dead.
Too still. Too quiet.
Like a grave.
The air was dry, warm against their skin, but the cold clung stubbornly, biting through their clothes like icy fingers.
The team moved toward the nearest hovercraft, their footsteps muffled by the ash.
It was still running. A low hum pulsed beneath the vehicle's frame.
The burly man crept forward, sliding open the side hatch to look inside.
Four passengers, huddled in the back, eyes glassy and unseeing. They didn't respond to his presence.
Lyleen stepped inside, after looking for a while she sent them out.
Next hovercraft.
One survivor sat slumped, muttering incoherently, staring through nothingness.
The last craft was empty.
No blood. No signs of struggle.
As if the passengers simply vanished.
Gray turned back to the road behind them.
Nothing but ash and silence.
But the silence felt wrong.
The group gathered near the second vehicle.
The burly man tried the comms. Static hissed back at him, unbroken.
Then a ripple moved through the fog behind them.
A low screech shattered the stillness.
Without warning, something slammed into the burly man
He was thrown backward, crashing into the hovercraft's side. Metal groaned and bent beneath the impact.
The burly man didn't get up.
The creature emerged from the fog,
It's movements jerky and unnatural. Its body was a sickly skeleton draped in rotting flesh barely hanging on. A dozen or so limbs twisted at impossible angles, ending in sharp, claw-like fingers that scraped the ground. Its face was a pale, featureless mask of stretched skin, twitching as if something wriggled beneath. No eyes. No mouth. Just a chilling, hollow presence that seemed to suck the warmth from the air.
Gray froze.
His knees buckled. His lungs refused to fill.
Inside his head, a new sound rang out.
No...not a sound.
A message.
[Status: FROZEN- FEAR LEVEL RAPIDLY RISING!]
[WARNING: MENTAL STRAIN ACCUMULATING!]
The words rang out in Grays ears, almost making him deaf but he ignored it all.
The sword slowly slipped from Gray's grasp, clattering against the ash.
His body betrayed him, refusing to obey his commands.
The creature crawled forward, its bones clicking ominously. Its endless arms stretched, reaching towards the young boy.
Then...
Movement.
Lyleen stepped between Gray and the creature, blades drawn in a blur of motion. Her back was to him, silent and steady.
The monster tilted its head, as if curious.
They locked eyes and Gray tried to scream but nothing came out.
The creature then suddenly lunged toward Lyleen.
Lyleen didn't flinch. Her expression unreadable.
She dodged left, spinning, slashing her blades through the air. Blood sprayed, a stark contrast against the pale creature.
Gray held his breath, the sight was stunning.
But stunning wasn't enough.
Before Gray could process what happened next, the monster vanished into the fog.
His lungs gasped for air.
The paralysis lifted.
He looked to Lyleen.
She was silent.
Then something thudded onto the ash beside him.
He looked right.
A head.
Her head.
Eyes wide. Mouth frozen in a silent scream.
Blood pooled, soaking into the ground beneath.
For a moment, Lyleen's body stood, rigid and defiant.
Then she collapsed forward.
Gray's throat tightened.
He couldn't scream.
Behind him, the fog shifted again.
His wristband blinked once more.
White.