The adrenaline finally faded. Pain slammed into him all at once, crushing his chest until it felt like it was folding inward. Every breath burned. His throat refused to work. He tried to scream, but no sound came out.
His body gave out completely.
'What is going on?'
Darkness crept in from the edges of his vision. As his sight blurred, he finally understood that the punch from earlier had done far more damage than he realized.
'Am I finally about to die?'
Memories drifted through his mind, scattered and hollow. Nothing stood out. Nothing felt worth holding onto.
'What a waste...'
A faint, breathless laugh escaped him as everything faded. The last thing Samuel saw was Elijah kneeling beside him, fingers pressed desperately to his neck, searching for a pulse.
Then darkness took him.
When Samuel opened his eyes again, sunlight was filtering weakly through a crack above. To his surprise, he was still alive.
His arms felt tingly and itchy. His vision was clearer than it had any right to be.
Something poked his shoulder.
'What the hell is that?'
He rolled over and looked behind him.
Ethan froze mid-motion, a stick still extended toward Samuel. Their eyes met. Ethan yelped and sprinted toward the door. Light flooded in as the door opened and closed again.
"Wait," Samuel said weakly, squinting as his vision adjusted. 'Did we escape the men chasing us?'
He slowly pushed himself upright and looked around.
'Where am I?'
The room was small and enclosed. Shelves lined the walls, stacked with dusty boxes and old supplies. The air smelled stale and moldy.
'Is this a storage room?'
The itching in his arms intensified. Samuel looked down.
"What the fuck happened to me?!" he muttered, touching his arm in disbelief.
Fur covered his forearms. His nails had sharpened into claws.
He flexed his fingers, then slashed lightly at the air, watching the claws move with unsettling ease.
'Wow… this is kinda cool,' he thought before catching himself.
Moments later, voices came from beyond the door.
"Erina! Why did you let Ethan enter the room?" Elijah sounded genuinely alarmed.
"I'm sorry," Erina replied, her voice trembling, on the verge of tears.
There was a pause, then the sound of movement.
"Alright," Elijah sighed. "Just don't let it happen again. I'm sorry for shouting."
A few moments passed.
Then Elijah knelt in front of Ethan and lowered his voice. "Is he awake?"
"Mhm," Ethan replied softly.
"Okay," Elijah said firmly. "Get behind me. If he attacks, don't move."
The door creaked open.
Samuel squeezed his eyes shut briefly, bracing himself for the light.
"Yo," he said quickly, forcing a laugh. "I'm not infected. I feel fine. Well, except my arms are covered in fur and I have claws now."
The siblings blinked at Samuel, all speechless and rooted in their spot. The attack never came.
A few hours earlier…
The night air around the hospital was thick with the scent of blood and death. Broken concrete crunched beneath heavy boots as the armored figure dragged the mangled corpse of the shadowed creature across the street. Its body scraped against the ground, leaving behind a dark smear on the pavement.
Four soldiers followed close behind, weapons raised, eyes darting in every direction. None of them spoke. The silence felt heavier than the gunfire from earlier.
The templar dropped the corpse just outside the hospital entrance. The thing barely resembled anything living now. Its carapace was cracked and charred, wings torn beyond recognition, its many eyes dull and lifeless.
"It seems you were not worthy after all," the templar said quietly, looking down at it. His voice carried a mocking tone.
One of the soldiers swallowed hard.
The captain stepped forward, posture rigid. He had witnessed countless battles since the start of the infection, but what he had seen tonight rattled him.
The way the templar fought without relenting, as if he had the stamina of a thousand men.
The abomination's regeneration reminded him of the horrors he had seen in extermination missions.
The captain hesitated before speaking, clearly choosing his words carefully. "Sir Arthur, we need to call for reinforcements. Our scout was killed during your engagement with the mutant. Without him, our tracking capabilities are severely reduced. We can only rely on drones now."
The templar named Arthur turned his helmet slightly toward the captain. The red glow of his eyes flickered faintly.
"Very well," Arthur said after a brief pause. "Call a replacement."
From that moment on, Arthur continued walking toward the hospital entrance, boots leaving shallow impressions in the ash-covered ground.
Relief briefly crossed the captain's face, but it faded quickly.
"Well," the captain continued, "I believe a partial mobilization would be more effective. The city is massive, and danger lurks in every corner. Six of us will not be enough to secure all possible escape routes."
Arthur stopped.
"How long would it take?" he asked.
The captain glanced down at the device mounted to his chest, fingers moving quickly across its surface. "There is currently a migration convoy traveling from the Citadel to the City of Dawn. Escort units will be available once they complete their assignment. We can request their assistance."
Arthur shook his head. "Not enough. It will take too long. By the time they arrive, the targets will already be beyond our reach."
He reached to his waist and retrieved a small cylindrical device. With a sharp motion, he activated it. The object floated midair, emitting a low pulsing hum; it showed a gray color.
"This beacon will summon nearby members of the Steel Legion," Arthur said. "You will be the one to explain to headquarters why this operation required such resources."
The captain felt sweat bead beneath his helmet. "Yes, Sir Arthur."
"Follow me while the beacon charges. Earlier, my scanners picked up a trace of bile from a Rat King." Arthur walked in and followed the trail that his helmet highlighted.
As they arrived at the hidden door where Samuel and Elijah sprayed the scent, Arthur knelt down and looked at the floor, the dust and dirt displaced, indicating that there was a hidden door in front of them.
Arthur opened the door and walked through; the captain followed while the three soldiers guarded the entrance.
The two of them eventually reached the room where Samuel woke up Arthur's eyes widened and laughed maniacally, "HAHAHAHAHA, I FOUND IT! I FINALLY FOUND IT!"
The captain was creeped out by Arthur's laugh but still curiously asked, "Sir, what is it?"
Arthur didn't answer the captain and instead said, "Contact HQ and tell them to raise this mission's rank to EX. I will formally request for another MITH Unit, we need to capture those targets, no matter what!"