"Damn it all, start falling back to the emergency room," Riquelme barked. "Gálvez, you're with me."

The men nodded and began retreating slowly down the side hallway, covering each other's backs. Gálvez audibly gulped before hurrying after Riquelme.

Once in the room, the scientist frantically rummaged through drawers and shelves, scattering their contents in search of something. Riquelme watched impatiently, weapon in hand, while his thugs guarded the entrance.

"Well? What the hell are you looking for?" he finally snapped.

Gálvez extracted a cylinder the size of a pistol, triumph flashing across his face. "Here it is!" he declared proudly. "I-it's a lamp…"

"You idiot!" Riquelme cut him off. "I thought you had a solution, not something to run in the dark. We're not leaving without my immortality!"

♢♢♢♢

Arnaud approached the trembling mercenaries. Their weapons were useless; most of their comrades now part of the numerous blood pools. Those pools, combined with the blood Arnaud had spilled everywhere, seemed to have come alive. Small tendrils stretched from them, writhing with unnatural purpose.

Suddenly, one of the mercenaries let out a blood-curdling scream as several tongues of fluid coiled around his legs, yanking him violently. In seconds, he vanished, swallowed by the scarlet mass as he died in agonizing shrieks.

The spectacle repeated itself on a larger scale, devouring every living being in its path. The men's screams became a terrible symphony of agony, mixed with viscous splashing and Arnaud's ecstatic roars.

In minutes, that living, frenzied sea completely covered the warehouse floor. One by one, Riquelme's mercenaries and underlings were engulfed without mercy by the scarlet storm.

Arnaud stood at the epicenter of the massacre, his body fusing and separating from the relentless crimson tide in a frantic, unstoppable cycle. Tentacles emerged from the pool, only to reintegrate into a renewed whirlwind of flesh and blood.

The slaughter continued mercilessly. Firearms proved useless against an entity capable of regenerating any damage with its power over blood and organic tissue. Arnaud swept through everything in his path like a living hurricane of violence and terror, mutilating and destroying without quarter.

Finally, only a few survivors remained, huddled in a corner and begging for their lives. Arnaud turned to them, his maw opening as he lunged.

Gradually, all the shots and screams began to fade until only Arnaud's low guttural growls, his insatiable feast, and the thick splashing of blood remained. Where dozens of armed men had stood, only shreds of dissolved flesh among scarlet puddles remained.

At last, the beast seemed to calm, its body condensing back into a more or less humanoid form, though still covered from head to toe by a vortex of blood. It advanced with slow, measured steps, its burning gaze seeking the dwelling of those who had dared to desecrate its home...

♢♢♢♢

"Impossible!" Gálvez gasped, eyes wide with horror.

"Damn you, Gálvez!" Riquelme roared furiously as he watched his entire defense force fail. Years spent gathering so many men, all for nothing. "You lied about that monster, about being able to study it, about being able to stop it!"

He drew his weapon and aimed it straight at the incredulous scientist's head. But at that moment, Arnaud pounced on them...

A harrowing scream tore from his throat as he began advancing towards the refuge where the cartel leaders had barricaded themselves. Riquelme, Solano, and Gálvez retreated with expressions of absolute terror.

Guarding the door, Zapata was the last to try to stop him. The burly thug unloaded his assault rifle at point-blank range, bullets impacting squarely on Arnaud's chest and head. But the wounds closed instantly. Before Zapata could react, Arnaud's claws, now long and sharp as razors, reached him. They pierced the bulletproof vest with ease, tearing through flesh, muscle, and bone with a horrifying crunch. Blood gushed in a torrent as Zapata fell, his scream drowned out by the monster's roar.

♢♢♢♢

Arnaud's assaults against the armored door grew increasingly frantic. Riquelme watched with mounting apprehension as the claw marks in the thick steel became deeper and deeper.

"You'd better have a plan, Gálvez," he growled through clenched teeth. "Because that thing isn't going to stop..."

The scientist nodded feverishly, wiping sweat from his brow with a handkerchief.

"Perhaps I could try a concentrated electromagnetic pulse..." he muttered to himself. "Or a paralyzing chemical agent..."

"Speak clearly for once!" Riquelme urged, losing patience.

Gálvez startled and looked at him with wide eyes. He took a deep breath before nodding solemnly. Though Riquelme didn't know he was faking it...

"I think... I think I have a solution," he finally declared. "But I need the monster to tire a bit more."

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Riquelme narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but the situation was too pressing to question him. He made a brusque signal to his men...

Arnaud paused for a moment, warm breath, almost vaporous due to the energy he was consuming, flowing from his dilated nostrils. The vortex fed him, and with a violent movement, he extended his arms. A blast of colossal force finally shattered the metal entrance.

Before they could react, a humanoid figure burst in at full speed from among the remains of the destroyed entrance. Riquelme barely had time to blink before a hand gripped him by the throat and lifted him effortlessly.

One of Riquelme's men tried to approach from the side to cut Arnaud with a machete since bullets were useless. But a single blow from Arnaud's hand was enough to send him flying across the room. He crashed against the wall with a sickening crunch, his body limp as a rag doll.

"Ugh... agh... let go... i-idiots, shoot!" Riquelme managed to stammer before his gaze met the burning eyes of his attacker.

Arnaud's jaws opened in a roar that shook the foundations of the building. A jet of thick, reddish liquid shot out with the fury of a geyser, drenching Riquelme completely.

The drug lord howled in agony as the substance began to bubble on his skin, fusing with it in a violent, searing reaction. He tried in vain to break free, his heart-rending screams echoing throughout the enclosure.

Riquelme writhed in Arnaud's grip, his body beginning to deform and consume itself in an amorphous mass of flesh and boiling fluids. His screams became inarticulate, inhuman, while Arnaud continued to hold him impassively under that scorching rain.

Solano, eyes bulging with panic, dropped his useless weapon and took off in a desperate attempt to flee. But there was no escape. In the blink of an eye, Arnaud reached him, his claws tearing through the man's back as if it were butter. Solano collapsed to the floor, his screams turning into gurgles choked by the blood gushing from his mouth.

Gálvez watched with horrified eyes as the last men fell one by one, torn apart by the creature in a bloody feast. He staggered backwards, bumping into a table as panic overwhelmed him.

"No, get away from me, monster!" he shrieked in a strangled voice as Arnaud turned towards him.

The scientist frantically fumbled on the table, his fingers closing around the handle of the UV lamp he had found earlier. Without thinking twice, he turned it on, aiming it directly at Arnaud's face.

The effect was instantaneous and intensely painful. A searing scream erupted from Arnaud's maw as the ultraviolet radiation hit his flesh full force. Gálvez had to squint against the blinding glare, but he didn't cease his attack.

Arnaud thrashed and roared, writhing in an attempt to escape the lethal embrace of the UV radiation. His skin began to evaporate in smoking shreds, blood drops hissing as they touched the ground. For the first time, he seemed truly vulnerable.

Taking advantage of his momentary edge, Gálvez desperately groped on the table, collecting some of the cell cultures in sample vials. After clumsily securing them, he took off running with the UV lamp in hand, keeping it aimed at Arnaud to deter him from following.

Arnaud roared and writhed, unable to advance further through the intense radiation. Gálvez reached an emergency door and rushed towards it without looking back.

Once outside, in the darkness of night, the scientist let out a sigh of relief, leaning against the wall as he tried to catch his breath. He looked at the vials he held with trembling hands, a greedy look lighting up his eyes.

"Now that those idiots have vanished, I don't have to work under threat anymore..." he said hoarsely. "The best part is that I got what I needed in the end, but..."

He shuddered as he recalled the violence he had witnessed, the horror of that supernatural creature tearing apart his captors. But an insatiable hunger also seethed within him, a morbid curiosity to uncover all the secrets of that abomination.

Gálvez headed towards the dark street where his vehicle awaited. A chilling smile crossed his face as he contemplated the countless possibilities that lay before him.

After all, now that Riquelme and his henchmen had been eliminated, that immeasurable power would be his alone. A power worth any price... even that of his own humanity.

♢♢♢♢

Amidst the chaos, Lola and Miguel tried to take advantage of the distraction to free the others. Lola, limping, picked up a pistol from one of the fallen mercenaries, while Miguel grabbed a shotgun.

"We have to get them out and escape," Lola murmured, her voice trembling but determined.

Miguel nodded, though pain was evident on his face. They approached stealthily, trying to get to the door without being detected.

Meanwhile, in the room where they were locked up, little Arturo cowered in terror, covering his ears to block out the heart-rending screams of the victims. Juana, for her part, prayed with eyes wide with fear.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the agonized screams ceased. And the door opened slowly, Lola and Miguel entered. Lola closed the door behind her to free Arturo and Juana...

But seconds later, Lola and her companions shuddered as the door to their cell was ripped off its hinges. Before them stood an imposing figure. Muffled sobs caught its attention. It turned towards the corner where they came from, and what it saw triggered a new wave of memories, which began to calm it. The vortex reduced greatly, and Arnaud's form returned to being completely human.

Juana broke down in tears, not knowing whether to feel gratitude or dread at such a spectacle.

But Miguel fired… Impacting Arnaud's chest. The wound healed instantly. Miguel tried to fire the shotgun again, but Arnaud was faster. With a single movement, he disarmed Miguel and threw him against a wall.

Lola screamed as she saw Miguel fall, unconscious and bleeding. She shot at Arnaud's head again and again, but Arnaud easily disarmed her. He lifted her by the neck, his claws gripping tightly while his red eyes stared at her intently.

The blood on Arnaud's hand and the small amount left in the vortex began to stir again, slowly consuming Lola. Her muffled screams made Arturo jump to his small feet.

Arturo ran towards them. "Stop, Ar! Please, stop!" he shouted with all his might.

The crying and desperation in Arturo's voice pierced through Arnaud's fury. For a moment, his red eyes faltered, and the pressure on Lola's neck loosened slightly. The blood consuming her stopped moving.

"Ar, please," Arturo begged, tears running down his face. "She's our friend. Don't hurt her."

Arturo's words began to break through the haze of hatred and violence in Arnaud's mind. He remembered the warmth of the moments shared with Arturo, the sense of belonging and love he had felt from the little boy. Slowly, he began to lower Lola, his claws gently releasing her.

Lola, gasping and coughing, fell to the ground, her eyes full of gratitude and fear. Arturo ran to her, hugging her tightly while looking at Arnaud with a mixture of hope and fear.

Arnaud knelt, his body trembling as the fury dissipated. His skin began to regain its human tone, and his red eyes faded, returning to those of a broken man, not a monster.

"I'm sorry," Arnaud murmured, his voice laden with pain and regret. "I'm so sorry."