Chase saw two Hunters cut down before he, Mia and Jamie had even come close enough to help them. The first wave of enemies arrived in a concentrated burst, talons and maws snapping at anything in their range. The remaining Hunters were poised to fail, but the sight of reinforcements seemed to rejuvenate them enough to hold on. Jamie devastated two monsters with a series of spells, and Chase cleaned up another two with quick shots from the Beretta.

The start of the battle had gone well enough, but as they roamed through the city, eventually arriving at the corner store where the close-range combat had resulted in Chase’s first battle scars, he noticed that their ranks were thinning.

A handful of Hunters would join in, yet by the time they crossed the next block, a few were gone.

Occasionally, it was due to Hunters escorting rescued civilians to a safer location, however Chase wouldn’t lie to himself and pretend that was the only reason for their diminishing force. Some of the people he’d fought with only five minutes ago were now dead.

Jamie crawled out from the wreckage of an antiques shop, grey dust covering him from head to toe and splinters of dark wood jutting from his armour and clothing. In one arm he clutched a wailing child, the infant’s mother close behind. She emerged, snatched the child from Jamie’s arms, then tore off in the direction of Ballistic’s recently cleared Gate. She stumbled over a shattered neon store sign, yanked a piece of wire from deep in her thigh as if it were nothing but a splinter, then continued running.

Whether she’d make it to safety, Chase didn’t know. It was hard to say if his efforts were even having any effect — what was the point if he pulled people from their cement cages only for them to fall prey to a roving monster?

As Jamie approached, he pushed the sour thought to the back of his mind.

“Think she’ll make it?” the A-Rank asked.

“I hope so. You seen any Ultras? S-Ranks? It’s been long enough for them to get here, surely.”

Their band had to take cover as the newly renovated bank building down the street collapsed in on itself like a deflated meringue. A forcefield of debris catapulted down the two-way street, blasting past them as they cowered from the deadly projectiles and deafening noise.

When it cleared, Jamie peeked out along the straight line that used to be Two City’s main avenue.

“They’re probably here, but not here, you know?” He squinted down the street, where the dust was settling. “Fuck. Chase? Might want to crack out the MP7! Incoming!”

Mia leapt from cover and posted herself in front of Chase. He brought the gun up to his shoulder, positioning it high enough that he barely had to crook his neck to see down the sight. It was slightly magnified, at least enough to see the horrifying monsters advancing towards them.

He’d gotten used to the monsters that came with the New Melbourne territory — Echin, Marshguts and Noctants — but these ignited a different fear, the fear of the unknown. Without seeing any of these under more controlled conditions, he was at the mercy of his intuition to understand how they acted. If one suddenly rocketed towards him on super-powered legs, that was something he’d have to deal with on the fly. Any of these ungodly creations might spit corrosive acid, but he wouldn’t know until it landed on his shoulder and sizzled through his skin.

The wound on his left side ached as the MP7 tried to jump in his hands. He was carving through the horde, but each body was replaced by two more. They streamed from hidden cavities like termites evacuating a destroyed nest.

A helicopter circled overhead, drifting through hazy clouds of smoke and dust. If it was a news helicopter, then the world would soon know about Chase’s ‘Talent’, but he didn’t care. At that moment, he would’ve been happy to show off every illegal gun from The Market if that was what it took to finish this battle.

Jamie crashed into his side, winding him and throwing off his aim. He looked up as the tall pylon of a metal streetlamp crashed down where he’d stood just moments ago.

“Thank—”

“No time!” Jamie cried. The streetlamp wasn’t the only thing they had to worry about. To their right, a hotel at least twenty storeys high slanted over them, cars from the above-ground parking floors crashing through walls and barriers and plummeting to the earth.

To run sideways, which would be the most efficient escape route, they had to either face the horde of monsters or run directly into an unmapped area of the City where sickening battle-sounds echoed. Perhaps that was where the Ultras and S-Ranks were fighting.

“Back the way we came!” Chase yelled. “Left at the next block!”

He sprinted, clutching the MP7 under one arm like a football player going for a touchdown. The hotel’s shadow crept over them, an encroaching darkness that felt like it was sitting on his shoulders. If he just made it to the next corner…

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

A monster leapt from a ruined car, slamming into Mia. She was able to fend it off with a shield bash, but the impact threw her into a maze of scrambled scaffolding.

In a split-second decision, Chase decided to turn back. Mia was trying to scramble to her feet, but the jumble of rolling metal pipes and temporary walkways sent her skittering around as if she were on rollerblades. Chase dove into the mess, kicking away metal and trying to clear a path. Heavy pipes bashed into his shin, but he forged on, eventually clasping Mia’s hand and ripping her from the mess.

They had bigger issues to worry about than a few bruises. Hotel-sized issues.

“That alley!” Mia shouted. She signalled a thin bluestone-paved road dividing two dilapidated buildings. It looked like something from a horror movie, where the walls would close in on the protagonist as they ventured further in, eventually squeezing them flat.

But it was their only chance. The others were already around the block, safe and out of the landing zone. Chase and Mia would never make it in time.

“Yes, go! Go go go!”

Chase vaulted the fallen scaffolding, clearing the edge of the alley and narrowly avoiding a flying brick. He followed Mia until she turned around, holding out her shield arm as if asking for a hug.

“Behind me!” she screamed, steadying herself against the tight wall and ducking behind her shield.

Chase got the message, sliding by and rolling into a ball behind the Tank.

The alley overflowed with bricks, glass, furniture and linen as the contents of the hotel exploded, filling every available crack in the shattered streets with its contents. Mia was knocked off her feet almost immediately, left with no choice but to crawl in next to Chase and cover both of them with her shield.

It hurt. God, it hurt.

The shield wasn’t wide enough to protect them from everything. Mia focused on sheltering their heads, though that allowed stray clods of detritus to creep under the protection and smack Chase in the ribs.

Mia cried out in pain, then everything went black as a massive weight compressed them both.

Am I unconscious? Dead?

He wiggled his fingers. Tried moving his feet. Everything was still attached, though the experience wasn’t pleasant. Mia’s form shifted next to him.

“Are we dead?” she asked. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper, and it shook like she was stifling tears.

Chase couldn’t help laughing at their identical lines of reasoning. “I don’t think so. I think we’re just covered in crap. Submerged in stone.”

“It’s so quiet.”

It was. He didn’t want to guess how many layers of debris it took to create such a complete cocoon. It was as if the outside world no longer existed, or some unknown Ultra had shown up and paused time.

“Can you move?” he asked.

“A little. My head hurts.”

“Mine too. And my ribs.”

Mia chuckled. “Should’ve bought yourself proper armour instead of that hoodie. It’ll be ruined.”

Chase went quiet, focusing on the pure sound of her laughter. Even whilst trapped in a silent prison of stone, he had to find something good.

“Think we could stay here until the heat dies down?” Mia asked.

“Nope. I’ve gotta piss.” Of course, he hadn’t realised it until he was caught in this fresh hell, but that was how his luck seemed to work. “Can your shield blow it apart?”

Mia sniffed at the stale air, loosening the shield strap around her arm. “Maybe. But if we disturb it, the whole thing might crash back down on us. Survived it once, but…”

“Mm.” He didn’t need to hear what she was insinuating. It would be a grisly fate if they got unlucky.

“Other options?” Chase was getting restless. He didn’t know how long the oxygen would last, or if fresh air was even weaselling its way in here at all. It wasn’t a pleasant place to be, by any means.

Suddenly, the whole mound shifted. It compressed down on his chest, driving the oxygen out of him and putting more pressure on his undoubtedly broken ribs. He tried to yell out, but he couldn’t expend the air.

A noise like wet leaves crackling in a fire meandered its way to them. Mia yelled out. “Stop! Hey, stop moving the rubble! Goddammit STOP!”

There was a pause, then the sound and effort redoubled. Chase felt the pressure on his chest slowly being relieved, then the first cracks of light seeped through.

Whatever was out there wasn’t human. It was a monster, relentlessly seeking them out. They were going to come out of the frying pan and fall straight into the fire.

“Shit, Mia!” There was only enough time to call out her name before a hulking, screeching monster ripped the last chunk of concrete from their prison and prepared to strike. Chase got a direct look deep into its mouth, noting the rows upon rows of gyrating yellow fangs. Three violet eyes dotted the monster’s forehead, and its shivering fur seemed to spark with electricity, as if it were charging up for an attack.

He’d read about these before. They were usually found in Gates in far-north Queensland, particularly near what used to be Cape York.

There was a reason people didn’t live there anymore.

He yanked the Beretta from his waist, unable to twist around to the MP7 which was confined beneath him. The monster swiped down as he took aim, whacking the weapon from his grip and slicing his hand. It felt like being hit by a baseball bat with barbed wire tied around the end. He shuffled around as he fought for the MP7, noticing a long red laceration going from the back of his hand to the slight webbing between his middle and index fingers.

“Down, Chase!”

He ducked as Mia caught a blow on her shield, the monster’s arm ricocheting backwards. A second swing caught her on the side of the head, and Chase watched in horror as his best chance of surviving was knocked out cold. Finally, he dislodged the MP7 from beneath him and pointed it down the monster’s roaring throat, firing a burst of three bullets. The monster sat down hard, but was still kicking, so he pointed the weapon at its head and fired again.

At this range, it was impossible to miss.

He dusted concrete powder off his hair and shoulders, then scurried to where Mia lay. She was in an awkward position — her back was twisted like a helix, and her right arm hooked under her neck in what looked to be an extremely uncomfortable sleeping position. He poked her cheek. She groaned, then slowly came back to reality and sat up.

“Holy fuck, Mia. I thought your back was broken.”

She rubbed her head and stretched, cracking her spine. “Nah, just flexible. You killed it, I’m guessing?”

“Just.”

Mia got to her feet, wobbled, then picked up her shield. She poked at the dead monster, lifting one of its foul lips with the end of her shield. Once her inspection was finished, she stared down the straight alley to where the rest of Two City was in peril, completely ignorant of their small victory in the cramped alley.

“You think Jamie’s alright?”