A beam of light pierces through the oppressive darkness of the train station as Henrick turns the flashlight on. Father David clutches his cross as he mutters prayers under his breath. Henrick tenses as he hears the skittering of unseen creatures, reminded of his encounter with the rat horde.
"Did you see what happened, Father? I was asleep when everything suddenly collapsed." Henrick whispers as he keeps an eye out for hostiles. Father David grimaces as he thinks back to a day before. "It happened so fast, I was on my way to the church when the skies turned purple. A dark purple wave spread throughout the city and some people started...changing." He finishes with a shiver as he stares at his hands.
Concussive energy starts building and disappears on the Father's hands as Henrick notes the priest's turbulent thoughts. "Hey, what can you do? New York, is filled with all kinds of weird shit." David smiles at Henrick's attempt at humour "Thank you for trying to cheer me up." then goes back to muttering his prayers.
They pass the toll machines, their faces set in grim lines, as they see bodies littered on the platform. Dozens of what used to be humans, mutated beyond recognition. Henrick crouches down and inspects the corpses, raising a brow as he sees puncture wounds.
"What is it?" Father David asks as Henrick stands with a confused look. The soldier says nothing as he continues checking the other bodies. After a checking a few more, Henrick looks at David and says "I'd understand if bullets were used to kill the mutated creatures, but these wounds are in line with what an arrow can make." David shakes his head in disbelief "Arrows? In 2025?"
Henrick nods "That's why I'm so confused. I've fought these things. I could barely kill the first one I fought, even though I could break concrete. An arrow isn't getting through its hide." Father David rubs his chin as he throws out a theory. "What if they're like us? Suddenly possessing abilities? Maybe arrows are their thing."
Their discussion is interrupted as a gutteral bellow echoes through the metro. "GGRRAAAAAHHHHHH!!!" Father David jumps a little as the roar sends shivers down his spine. Without warning, a large heavily mutated humanoid with a gaping maw bursts through a wall and sends David flying towards the train tracks.
Henrick barely has time to react when the creature lunges and lands a heavy blow on his chest. The soldier skips across the floor and slams heavily into the toll machines, his flashlight flying into the distance. Machinery and sparks mix with blood as Henrick shakily gets up from the floor, his chest now sporting shallow knuckle wounds.
Unable to see where it is, Henrick isn't able to dodge a vicious blow to his head, sending him face first into the ground. Snarling with rage, Henrick unleashes a blast of lightning that knocks his attacker back and briefly illuminates the surroundings, finally revealing the creature.
The mutated being's skin glistens with a dark viscous liquid. Its entire body is covered with bony protrusions, its arms reach the ground, its knuckles ending in sharp spikes, while its eyes glow a malevolent red. Father David slowly gets up and shouts out, "What in the Lord's name is that?!?!", as Henrick rolls out of the way from a vicious smash. The soldier then leaps up and lands a brutal electrical knee to the creature's head, dazing it.
Somehow shrugging off the blow, the mutated creature grabs Henrick by the throat and chokeslams him hard to the ground. Henrick screams "Nothing in His name, now blast it!!!" as he does his best to hold the creature in place. Father David climbs up from the train tracks and roars as he unleashes a concussive blast that staggers the mutated abomination.
With room to breathe, Henrick unleashes a torrent of electricity that chars the creature's skin and causes it to convulse. The soldier sweeps the monstrosity off its feet and mounts it, raining down blow after the blow that shatters the ground beneath it.
The monster thrashes and manages to strike Henrick across the face, leaving five nasty slashes with its knuckle spikes. Henrick, however, just grins and transitions into an armbar. Immediately snapping the monster's arm without hesitation. "GRAAACK--" Its scream is cut short as Henrick mounts it once more and repeatedly drives his elbow down on its head.
After 5 strikes, the monster's skull finally gives way as brain matter spills out onto the station floor. Henrick sits up and breathes heavily as purple mist enters his body. He looks to Father David, who pales at the brutal display, and nods in thanks. He pushes off its chest and stands up as he looks around the station for his flashlight.
His eyes suddenly widen as he tackles David away from a spiked tentacle. The duo roll off each other and immediately dive for cover, as another tentacle strikes where they once were, missing them by inches.
Father David strikes the ground with a concussive wave, causing the ground to shatter and unbalance their would-be ambusher. "Another kind of monster?? What are they anyway? Zombies?" The priest shouts as Henrick strikes the creature with an electrically charged straight kick, sending it convulsing through a pillar.
Within a second, Henrick reaches the downed creature and grabs its tentacle, wrapping the limb around its neck and savagely pulling. With a resounding CRACK, the subway is once more plunged into silence, save for the heavy breathing of the soldier and the priest. Henrick stands and clenches his fist in anger "We got lucky. That thing happened to pass through the light from the flashlight. Coming into the subway was a mistake, damn it." David, meanwhile, takes a knee and looks incredulously at the soldier.
"We're alive. That's all that matters. Also, how are you still functioning right now? I feel like I want to throw up." The priest says as he tentatively touches a gash on his arm and starts to sweat heavily. Henrick shakes his head and makes his way to the flashlight.
He glares at David and says "You're experiencing ability fatigue. You'll have to absorb more of the purple mist that comes from these things. That means you'll have to start killing them." Picking up the flashlight, Henrick supports Father David and continues "I know you've been limiting the power of your blasts. This isn't the time to start repenting, Father. We can't afford to be passive."
Father David merely looks away as they walk back up the stairs to the surface, silently pondering Henrick's words. "Those things are getting stronger and mutating further. If we can't keep up, then we'll die." Henrick presses further as the priest frowns, still denying their new reality. They exit the subway while the thunderstorm is now raging at full force. Abandoned cars are overturned, large chunks of debris smash into nearby buildings, and lightning craters the ground as it strikes.
Then the rain starts. Sickly dark purple liquid suddenly pour from the heavens and bathe the world. Henrick and David feel their wounds and exhaustion ebbing away as they seemingly absorb the liquid. Though the reprieve is short lived as the thunderstorm intensifies.
The duo find themselves struggling to even walk straight as the winds threaten to overpower them. They try their best to power through and go back to the skyscraper that they rested in earlier, but something catches David's attention. With a heave, he pushes Henrick away as a mutated human lands between them from the crumbling building next to the subway entrance.
It convulses and contorts as black veins spread through its body as soon as the rain touches it. "GAAAAAAHHHH!!" The mutated human screams as it rapidly mutates further, becoming larger and stronger.
Henrick scowls and leaps on top of the rapidly strengthening monster. He pierces its eyes with his thumbs and unleashes a violent surge of electricity that instantly carbonises the mutated human's entire body. It thrashes as it tries to resist, but its body refuses to heed its commands under the brutal electric onslaught. Its struggles lessen as its eyes melt from the electrical energy.
Purple liquid pours into Henrick's body as exhaustion sets in, no doubt from pushing his body to the limit to kill the large mutated human as quickly as possible. He feels his ability reaching a new threshold, but is too weak to appreciate it. His eyes glow faintly as something shifts within his very DNA.
All around them, mutated humans fall from the surrounding buildings and exit from crevices in the streets. As if acting on instinct, they open their arms in acceptance of the purple rain. David's eyes widen in horror as the abominations start mutating. Their limbs elongate and their vague resemblance to humans become even more diluted. Most simply become larger, but some become specialised like the stealth creatures. Some grow tentacles, and some grow extra heads. They grow extra appendages and release tortured howls as if to signal the next stage of their evolution.
Father David picks himself up and slings Henrick's arm over his shoulder as they steadily make their way to the skyscraper. They make such small progress, that they might as well not have moved at all. David's legs give out and both men kneel on the floor, as the monsters slowly regain their senses.
Suddenly, a voice cuts through the thunderstorm and reaches Henrick's ears. "Over here!!!" The soldier snaps his head towards the sound and sees a beautiful woman with silver hair beckoning them to follow her to an alley. He grunts as he picks himself and the Father up, his wounds rapidly regenerating and his body energised from the rain.
They enter the alley as the woman easily removes a manhole cover. She stares at both men and grimaces "Follow me, if you want to live." Then jumps down into the sewers. Henrick unceremoniously drops the priest inside as he grabs the circular metal and plugs the manhole.
Father David frowns at Henrick, but picks himself up and follows the silver haired woman. They walk for what seemed like hours, until they arrive at a large chamber. Once they arrive, Henrick finally gets a good look at their saviour. Her silver hair shimmers in the dim lighting, her beauty seemed ethereal, and her pointed ears stuck out proudly towards the heavens.
The soldier and the priest stare blankly and Henrick speaks amidst the silence "...what the hell?"
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END