Chapter 11

The air was thick and stale, carrying a faint familiar metallic tang that clung to the back of Mark’s throat.

Their boots crunched over loose gravel and debris as the trio retraced their steps through the cavern’s winding corridors.

Having traversed these tunnels before, they made swift progress in retracing their steps to the charred remnants of the abomination Mark had ultimately slain.

“Looks like it was some fight, huh?” Katrina remarked.

Ria nodded, “Bastard was tough if not anything else. Took down one of our own, too.”

Crouching next to the charred remnants, the werewolf ran her fingers over the sooty ground. Her gaze seemed to dissect the remains, her brows furrowing slightly.

Ria, curious, leaned closer. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure ... There’s just ... something vaguely familiar about it that I can’t quite place.”

“Let’s keep moving,” Mark said, eager to put the creature, and the memories it evoked, behind them.

They ventured deeper into the network of tunnels, the air growing colder, the walls stretching further apart until it felt like they were walking through a massive underground cathedral.

The flickering light from their glow sticks barely scratched the surface of the darkness.

“Just how huge is this whole place?” Ria wondered.

He nodded, his steps echoing faintly. “I didn’t notice last time. But yeah ... it’s massive.”

They continued forward in silence, occasionally pointing out strange markings or signs of some conflicts along the way, like deep claw marks in the stone and mysterious stains on the walls.

Katrina froze mid-step, her hand shooting up in a signal to stop.

Mark, who had been following too closely, almost crashed into her back but caught himself just in time.

“What is it?” He hissed.

“Someone’s here.”

He peered into the darkness but saw nothing. “Maybe you’re just—”

As if in response, a low, guttural growl rumbled from the shadows, vibrating through the air and into their bones.

Ria reacted instantly, raising her hands to summon thick strands of ice that coiled protectively around them, their frosty surface shimmering in the faint light.

Thud thud.

Mark’s heart hammered in his chest as his knuckles sparked, scanning the darkness.

The growl echoed again, closer this time, and then—slowly—a figure emerged into the dim light.

It was human. Or at least, it had been.

The thing’s lower jaw was gone, its neck a grotesque mess of raw, exposed muscle. Its hollow, lightless eyes seemed to absorb the faint glow of their surroundings rather than reflect it. Its movements were all twitch, weird, as if some unseen force was yanking it forward step by step.

Katrina’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “What the fuck are you?”

Movement flickered in the corner of his eye. Whipping around, he spotted another figure creeping into view, one after the other. Grimacing, he fished out a second glow stick from his pocket and chucked it into the darkness.

The faint green light revealed them: a circle of similar figures, some crawling on all fours, others lurching upright - a veritable horde of them emerging from shadowed alcoves and crumbling side-passages like ants boiling from a disturbed nest.

Their bodies were a patchwork of scars and unnatural bulges, the kind of wrongness that turned the stomach.

This was bad. Very bad.

▲\▼/▲—∞—▼/▲\▼

For a moment, the horde simply loomed in the shadows, silent and unmoving. The trio stood tense, exchanging glances. Mark could feel his heart hammering in his chest, each beat like a countdown.

Katrina’s green eyes narrowed as she flexed her fingers, her nails sharpening into deadly claws. “What’s the holdup? You freaks waiting for an invitation?”

Then, as if her taunt had flipped a switch, the figures moved as one. A wave of snarling, inhuman shapes surged toward them, their grotesque forms lurching forward with alarming speed.

“Hope you two are ready. Looks like we’re in for a hell of a time,” she grinned, launching herself into the oncoming rush.

Her claws ripped through the first figure with almost surgical precision, spraying crimson across the cavern floor as she carved a path forward.

“Yeah ... I can see why she’s famous,” he muttered under his breath, summoning his blades as the first wave closed in.

Beside him, Ria simply smirked as she unleashed a blistering volley of jagged ice shards in a whirling cyclone - the frozen projectiles shredding through the frontline of attackers with brutal efficiency.

Not one to be left behind, Mark clenched his fists and let the electricity flow through him. Sparks danced over his skin, lighting the cavern in brief, blinding flashes as he hurled a bolt of lightning into a group of attackers. They convulsed violently before collapsing, their bodies smoking.

The first attacker lunged at him, swinging its twisted limbs wildly. Mark sidestepped, narrowly avoiding its claws, and slashed upward with one of his summoned blades. The weapon sliced cleanly through the creature’s torso, but to his surprise, it staggered back only momentarily before coming at him again.

“Oh, come on!” he growled, stepping in to finish the job with a downward strike that split its skull.

Two more rushed at him from opposite sides. Mark twisted on his heel, conjuring a barrier of crackling energy that sent one flying backward, then spun and drove his blade into the other’s chest. The creature gurgled as it fell, but Mark barely had time to catch his breath before another leapt at him.

He thrust his hand forward, sending a surge of electricity straight into its torso, the bright arcs lighting the cavern as it collapsed in a smoking heap.

Despite their relentless ferocity, there was no sign of coordination or strategy in their attack. They lunged and clawed like rabid animals, their movements jerky and unnatural.

Yet, for all their savagery, they were disturbingly resilient. Blows that should’ve shattered bones or dropped them instantly only seemed to stagger them momentarily before they came back for more.

A guttural roar split the air, and Mark turned just in time to see Katrina plow through the horde like a juggernaut. Each swing of her talons left a bloody mess in its wake, limbs and torsos torn apart as if they were paper. She’s a fucking menace.

“How many more of these freaks are down here?” Ria grunted, shards of ice swirling around her as she skewered another creature.

He barely managed a grunt of acknowledgment, too focused on the relentless melee. Just keep moving. Just keep fighting. His limbs felt heavier, the constant use of his abilities draining his energy faster than he liked. Persistent little bastards.

He cycled through his arsenal, mixing strikes and lightning blasts, trying to create a rhythm to the chaos.

Mark’s lightning arced between two creatures, stunning them just long enough for Katrina to leap forward, her claws cutting clean through their torsos. Behind her, Ria froze another group in place, sending them toppling like statues

The horde just kept coming, relentless as a bad smell. Each passing moment dragged on like a never-ending Monday morning.

Katrina’s growl echoed through the cavern as she lunged at a towering behemoth, her claws a blur. The creature, easily twice her size, roared in defiance, swinging an arm that looked like it could level a small building. The two collided in mid-air with a thunderous crack, dislodging small rocks from above.

Her claws dug deep, dark ichor spraying as she raked its chest.

But the beast wasn’t going down without a fight. It swung its massive limb, the blow catching Katrina’s side and sending her skidding across the cavern floor.

Mark didn’t hesitate. As the beast advanced on her, he extended both hands and unleashed a torrent of plasma, the crackling energy wrapping around the creature in bright, sizzling arcs. It howled, stumbling back under the relentless assault, but Mark could tell it wasn’t enough to drop the damn thing.

“Ria! A little help here!”

Ria was already moving. With a fluid motion, she summoned a massive ice spear and hurled it toward the beast. The spear struck true, impaling its shoulder and pinning it momentarily to the cavern wall. It thrashed wildly, tearing free with a bellow of pain, but the delay gave Katrina the opening she needed. With a feral roar, she leaped back into the fray, her claws flashing in deadly arcs.

The battle raged on with unrelenting ferocity, the twisted freaks attacking in endless, mindless waves.

A blur of movement to his left was all the warning he got before something hit him like a freight train, tackling him to the ground. He landed hard, the air rushing from his lungs as claws raked against his barrier.

He found himself face-to-face with a female creature, her void-like eyes boring into his with unhinged intensity. It’s mouth opened in a snarl, revealing jagged teeth as it hissed and lunged for his throat.

“Shit—” Mark grunted, struggling to keep it at bay.

It’s strength was unreal, and he had to summon every ounce of his enhanced physicality just to hold it back. Fuck. The creature’s claws scraped against his shoulder, drawing blood, and Mark’s patience snapped. He thrust his hand against its chest, channeling a surge of lightning blasting her off him, her body convulsing before collapsing to the ground.

Panting, he scrambled to his feet, his heart pounding, his gaze scanning the cavern. The number of creatures had dwindled, significantly, the floor littered with mangled bodies and frozen shards of ice. We’re making progress.

Katrina tore through what remained with the ferocity of a wild animal. Her claws slashed through the air, disemboweling one attacker before she whirled on another and drove her talons through its skull. The creature twitched once before going limp, and Katrina shoved it aside like trash.