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"Fuck, fuck, this is hell!"
Colonel Steven Bright's voice cut through the chaos of gunfire and screaming. His gray and black hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat despite the cold air. The eyepatch over his left eye was stained with blood from a cut above it. His hands gripped the artifact rifle tight enough to make his knuckles white as he fired round after round into the tide of monsters pouring from the gate.
The recoil slammed into his shoulder with each shot. The smell of burnt mana and cordite filled his nostrils. Around him, soldiers and hunters were falling back in disorganized clusters, dragging wounded comrades while trying to maintain some semblance of defensive fire.
The monsters kept coming.
Some looked like wolves that had been turned inside out, their muscles exposed and glistening wet in the afternoon light. Others resembled humanoid figures with every inch of skin stripped away, leaving only raw red muscle and white tendons visible. They moved with jerky, unnatural motions, their exposed flesh catching on the air as they ran.
But the worst part was the sound they made.
Every single one of them screamed as they attacked. Not war cries or battle roars, but genuine screams of agony. Like they were being flayed alive with every step they took. The sound burrowed into your skull and made thinking nearly impossible.
"Fuck, fuck, this isn't even a normal B-rank gate!" Steven reloaded his rifle with practiced speed, his fingers moving on muscle memory alone. "Why are the mob monsters already B-rank? At this point, the boss will be A-rank or higher!"
He turned his head slightly, not taking his eyes off the advancing horde. "Major Daniel! How many soldiers and hunters have we lost?"
Major Daniel was twenty meters to his left, crouched behind an overturned vehicle. His green bow was pulled taut, firing arrow after arrow into the mass of skinless creatures. Each arrow exploded on impact, taking down two or three monsters at a time. But more kept replacing them.
"Including the severely injured and the deserters?" Daniel shouted back between shots. His voice was hoarse from breathing in too much dust and smoke. "Almost sixty now!"
Steven's jaw clenched so hard his teeth ached. Sixty. More than half his force, gone in less than an hour.
"All we have left now are a group of C-rank hunters!" Daniel continued. He fired another arrow, this one catching a wolf-monster in what would have been its throat. The creature went down shrieking. "We're getting overrun!"
"Fuck, this is fucking hopeless." Steven fired three more shots in rapid succession, each one finding its target. But it didn't matter. There were too many. "Well, at least it's nearing its end. When the fuck is the boss going to appear?"
As if responding to his words, the monsters suddenly stopped pouring from the gate.
The ones already through continued their attack, but no new creatures emerged. The sudden change was so abrupt that several hunters actually stopped shooting for a moment, confused by the shift.
Then the gate began to crack.
Not just at the edges where it connected to reality, but across its entire surface. Fractures spread like spiderwebs across the shimmering portal, each crack glowing with an inner light that hurt to look at directly.
The gate exploded.
Not with fire or force, but with a burst of thick gray mist that rolled out across the battlefield like a living thing. It moved against the wind, spreading in all directions at once. The temperature dropped so fast that Steven could see his breath crystallize in front of his face.
"Shit," he muttered, activating his Mana-Fort Armor. The kinetic barrier flared to life around his combat vest and rifle, visible as faint blue lines of energy that pulsed in rhythm with his heartbeat. "Everyone get back! Now!"
But it was too late.
The cold came next. Not regular cold, but the kind of freezing air that turned moisture in your lungs to ice. Several of the C-rank hunters nearest to the gate collapsed immediately, their bodies seizing up as hypothermia set in within seconds.
Then the boss emerged.
It walked through the dissipating mist like a king entering his throne room. The creature stood nearly three meters tall, towering over the battlefield. Its body was completely devoid of skin, every muscle fiber visible and twitching with each movement. But unlike the mindless creatures that had come before it, this thing moved with terrible purpose and grace.
The muscle tissue was a deep red mixed with black, like meat that had been left to rot just enough to start darkening. Every cord of muscle was clearly defined, overlapping and interwoven in patterns that suggested both incredible strength and disturbing beauty. The tendons that connected them were thick as rope, white and glistening.
Its skull was exposed, bone bleached white and smooth. The jaw hung open slightly, revealing rows of teeth that looked more like shards of ice than actual teeth. Empty eye sockets stared forward with horrible intelligence, somehow seeing despite having no eyes at all.
The arms were too long for its body, hanging down past its knees. Each finger ended in a claw made of frozen bone, icicles that dripped constant streams of water that froze again before hitting the ground. Its ribcage was visible, expanding and contracting with each breath, and through the gaps between ribs, something cold and blue pulsed like a frozen heart.
Frost formed on the ground with each step it took. The remaining skinless monsters that had been attacking suddenly stopped and turned, forming a protective circle around their master.
"Fuck." Steven's voice came out as barely more than a whisper. "I shouldn't have fucking jinxed it."
The boss raised one hand, palm facing upward. Ice began to form in its grip, crystallizing out of the moisture in the air. Within seconds, it held a massive icicle the size of a spear, clear as glass and sharp as any blade.
"Major Daniel!" Steven's command voice came back, cutting through his own fear. "Retreat! Take the injured and go!"
Daniel's head snapped toward him. "What about you, Colonel?"
"What the fuck do you think I'm gonna do, you idiot?" Steven chambered a Shockburst Round, the special ammunition glowing faintly in his rifle. "I'm gonna hold this thing back and save all your useless asses! And call for reinforcements, you fuck!"
Major Daniel understood. The Colonel's words were always harsh, always rough, but everyone who served under him knew the truth. Steven Bright cared more about the lives of his soldiers than he cared about his own survival. That's what made him a good leader. That's why people followed him even when the odds were impossible.
"Retreat, you soldiers and hunters!" Daniel stood up from his cover, waving his arm in a wide arc. "Leave the corpses, we'll collect them later! Carry the injured and run as fast as you can! Follow me!"
The surviving force began to move. Some of the hunters hesitated, looking between the Colonel and the retreating group. But Daniel's voice cut through their uncertainty.
"Move! That's an order!"
They moved.
The boss watched them go with those empty eye sockets. Then it drew its arm back and hurled the massive icicle toward the retreating group. The projectile cut through the air with a sound like tearing fabric, leaving a trail of frost in its wake.
Steven was already moving. He slammed the rifle butt into the ground and activated Fortress Mode: Hellshield Protocol.
Mana erupted from the rifle's core, spreading out in a wide arc in front of him. The rotating shield array materialized as overlapping hexagonal plates of pure energy, each one the size of a riot shield. They spun in place, creating a 120-degree barrier that covered the entire retreat path.
The icicle hit the barrier dead center.
The impact sent shockwaves through the shield array, visible ripples spreading across each hexagonal plate. The icicle shattered on contact, exploding into thousands of frozen shards that bounced harmlessly off the barrier. Steven felt the absorbed energy flow back into his rifle, the weapon growing warm in his hands as it converted the kinetic force into usable power.
"Don't ignore me, you fucker!" Steven's voice was pure defiance. He planted his feet wider, rifle still anchored to the ground, shield still active. "You shall not pass!"
The boss tilted its skull-head, regarding him with curiosity. Then it began to walk forward.
Each step froze the ground beneath it. The skinless wolf-creatures parted to let it through, forming a corridor of writhing muscle and exposed bone. The temperature continued to drop, and Steven could feel ice forming on his eyebrows and the exposed parts of his face.
Twenty meters away, the boss stopped. It raised both hands this time, and the air around them began to shimmer.
"Shit," Steven muttered. He deactivated the Hellshield Protocol and activated Iron Recoil in braced mode instead. His boots locked to the ground as if magnets held them there. His aim stabilized completely, the rifle scope showing no shake or tremor despite his rapid breathing. The 40% damage resistance settled over him like a second skin.
The boss completed its spell.
Five massive icicles formed in the air around it, each one as large as the first. They hung there for a heartbeat, frost dripping from their tips. Then they launched.
Steven fired his Shockburst Round.
The explosive mana cartridge left the barrel with a sound like thunder. It met the center icicle head-on and detonated, releasing a compressed shockwave that shattered all five projectiles simultaneously. Ice rained down across the battlefield, chunks the size of fists bouncing off Steven's kinetic barrier.
But the boss was already moving.
It crossed fifteen meters in the time it took Steven to reload. One moment it was standing in the distance, the next it was right in front of him, one clawed hand reaching for his throat.
Steven deactivated Iron Recoil's braced mode and activated its movement mode in the same instant. The recoil propulsion kicked in, using the stored energy from his last shot to launch him backward at incredible speed. He flew three meters back, his boots barely touching the ground as he slid to a stop.
The boss's claw closed on empty air where his neck had been.
"Too slow!" Steven brought the rifle up and fired three rounds in rapid succession. Each one hit center mass, punching through the exposed muscle tissue. Black ichor sprayed from the wounds, freezing in mid-air before hitting the ground.
But the creature didn't even flinch.
It lunged forward again, both arms reaching this time. Steven rolled to the side, his combat training taking over. The claws passed through the space he'd occupied, close enough that he felt the cold radiating from them.
He came up firing, emptying the rest of his magazine into the creature's legs. The bullets tore through muscle and shattered bone, but the boss just kept coming. Its movements were slower now, limping slightly, but it didn't stop.
Steven reloaded, his fingers moving faster than thought. The new magazine clicked into place just as the boss cast another spell.
This time the ice formed on the ground itself. Spikes of frozen crystal erupted from the pavement in a wave spreading toward Steven. Each spike was as tall as a man, sharp enough to impale, and they were moving fast.
He jumped, using another burst from Iron Recoil to propel himself upward and to the left. The spikes passed beneath him, one of them close enough to tear through his pant leg. He landed hard, rolled again, came up with the rifle already aimed.
The boss was right there.
It backhanded him with enough force to send him flying. Steven felt ribs crack as he hit the ground and tumbled across the pavement. His kinetic barrier flared bright blue, absorbing most of the impact, but cracks were starting to show in the energy field.
Pain exploded through his chest, but he forced himself to stand. Blood filled his mouth, and he spat it out along with a tooth.
"That all you got?" he shouted, bringing the rifle back up.
The boss answered by casting another spell.
This one was different. The air itself seemed to freeze, turning into visible crystals that hung suspended in space. The crystals began to orbit the boss, spinning faster and faster until they formed a barrier of frozen air that surrounded it completely.
Steven fired. The bullet passed through the barrier and simply stopped, frozen in mid-air along with everything else. Within seconds, he'd emptied another magazine, and all of his bullets hung suspended in the ice barrier like insects in amber.
"Fuck." Steven's breathing was labored now, each breath sending pain through his cracked ribs. His barrier was at maybe thirty percent strength, cracks spreading across the hexagonal plates. He was running out of options.
The boss raised both hands again. The frozen bullets inside its barrier began to glow blue. Then they reversed direction, launching back at Steven with twice their original speed.
He activated Hellshield Protocol again, his rifle slamming into the ground. The barrier came up just in time. His own bullets hammered against it, each impact weakening the shield further. The absorbed energy was building up fast, more than the rifle could safely contain.
When the last bullet hit, Steven released the Counterburst.
All the stored energy exploded outward in a devastating frontal blast. The force was enough to shatter the boss's ice barrier completely, sending frozen shards flying in all directions. The boss itself was thrown backward ten meters, leaving a trail of black ichor across the ground.
Steven dropped to one knee, gasping. His rifle was overheating, steam rising from the barrel. His barrier was down to maybe fifteen percent. His ribs were definitely broken, and he was pretty sure he had internal bleeding.
The boss stood back up.
Of course it did.
The wounds Steven had inflicted were already closing, muscle tissue knitting back together at visible speed. Within seconds, most of the damage was repaired. The creature's skull-head tilted again, and if it had lips, Steven was sure it would be smiling.
It began to walk forward again, slowly this time. Like it knew Steven was out of tricks. Like it was savoring the kill.
Steven checked his rifle. One magazine left. His barrier was failing. His body was broken.
Ragnarok Barrage. That was his only option left.
But it needed a full minute to charge. Sixty seconds of continuous channeling while his defense dropped to almost nothing. And the boss was clearly intelligent enough to interrupt him. It had already shown it could close distance in seconds when it wanted to.
He needed range. At least a hundred meters, maybe more, to have any chance of completing the charge before the boss reached him. But there was nowhere to run. The battlefield was littered with debris and corpses. His Iron Recoil movement boost could only give him short bursts of speed, not sustained distance.
Panic started to creep in at the edges of his mind.
Think, Steven. Think!
He could try to lead it away, use the terrain to his advantage. But the boss was faster than him, and his injuries were slowing him down. He wouldn't make it fifty meters before those claws tore him apart.
He could try to use his remaining Shockburst Rounds to create distance, but he only had three left. That would buy him maybe twenty seconds at most. Not nearly enough.
His mind raced through scenarios, each one ending with his death. The boss was too strong, too fast, too intelligent. Without the full minute to charge Ragnarok Barrage, he had no way to put it down permanently.
The boss was fifteen meters away now. Ten. Its clawed feet left frozen footprints on the pavement, ice spreading outward from each step.
Steven raised his rifle with shaking hands. His finger found the trigger. This was it. His last stand. He'd go down fighting at least.
The boss raised both hands, preparing what looked like a massive spell. The air around it began to turn white with frost, temperature dropping so fast that Steven's exposed skin started to burn from the cold.
Five meters.
Steven squeezed the trigger, firing his last regular rounds. They punched through muscle but the boss didn't slow. It was right in front of him now, close enough that he could see the individual muscle fibers twitching, smell the scent of frozen meat and death.
The clawed hand reached for his throat.
"Colonel!"
Three figures burst onto the battlefield from the direction of the retreating forces. They moved fast, faster than normal hunters, covering ground with practiced efficiency.
Steven recognized them immediately. Jack, Ash, and Kai. The hunters who'd been part of the initial response team.
Jack had both his arms extended, and Steven noticed with shock that they looked brand new. Hadn't Jack lost those arms earlier in the fight? How was that possible?
"We've got this!" Jack's voice carried confidence that didn't match the situation. "Colonel, fall back and prepare that big attack of yours!"
Hope surged through Steven's chest, almost painful in its intensity. These three rascals had come back. They were giving him a chance.
"Great timing, you rascals!" Steven shouted, already backing away. His hands moved to his rifle, preparing to channel mana for Ragnarok Barrage.
The boss's attention shifted, those empty eye sockets tracking the new threats. Its hand, which had been reaching for Steven's throat, changed direction.
And the three hunters charged forward to meet it.