The city was still cloaked in darkness, the early morning sky casting a dull gray haze over the crumbled buildings. Hale adjusted the strap of his rifle, his sharp eyes scanning the ruins ahead. Beside him, Jace moved with quiet precision, his steps careful as they navigated through the debris. The other two team members, Reyes and Colt, kept close, their weapons drawn and ready.

  "This place is dead," Jace muttered, his voice low but tense. "Even the Shadows don't linger here."

  Hale didn’t answer immediately, his focus locked on the street ahead. The air felt heavier than usual, thick with something he couldn’t place—something wrong.

  "Stay alert," Hale said quietly. "Dead streets are the ones that bite hardest."

  They moved deeper into the city, the ruins towering around them like grave markers. The silence gnawed at their nerves, and every shadow seemed to stretch too long, too thin.

  Suddenly, a chill ran through the group. A sound. Faint, but unmistakable. Not a growl. Not the usual shuffle of infected. It was a whisper. Low, crawling across the air like smoke.

  Colt froze. "Did you hear that?"

  Jace nodded, his jaw tight. "Yeah. What the hell was that?"

  They pressed closer to the crumbling wall of a nearby building, weapons raised. The whisper came again—closer this time. The hairs on the back of Hale's neck stood on end.

  And then they saw it.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  It stood beneath the broken archway of a collapsed building. Tall. Almost impossibly tall. Its legs were elongated, moving with an unnatural fluidity. Tentacles writhed from beneath its arms, curling and twisting as if they tasted the air. Its face—or what should have been a face—was smooth and eyeless. Pale skin stretched over bone, and when it tilted its head, a low, guttural voice echoed, though its mouth didn’t move.

  "Run," Reyes whispered, his voice sharp with fear. "We need to go."

  But none of them moved. They stood frozen, caught in the eerie pull of the creature. It didn’t advance. Not yet. It just stood there, head tilted, like it was listening. Watching without eyes.

  "We're not fighting that thing," Jace said, voice low. "We don't even know what it is."

  Hale nodded slowly. "Quiet. Back away. Don't give it a reason."

  Step by step, they began to retreat, their breaths held tight. The creature didn’t move. It just stood, its tentacles twitching, listening.

  And then Colt stepped back onto a shard of broken glass. The crack echoed through the street like a gunshot.

  The creature lunged.

  It moved faster than anything they'd faced before, limbs stretching, tentacles snapping. The team scattered. Hale ducked behind a car, heart hammering as the beast tore past him, its tendrils lashing against concrete.

  "Move! Now!" Hale shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos.

  Jace yanked Reyes back, diving behind a slab of concrete. Colt wasn’t so lucky. One tentacle caught his leg, dragging him across the street. His scream tore through the morning air, raw and desperate.

  "Colt!" Jace yelled, but Hale grabbed his arm.

  "No! You'll get yourself killed!"

  Colt kicked, twisted, fought with everything he had. His knife flashed once, twice, cutting into the creature's pale flesh. It hissed, a sound that felt wrong, inhuman, as if it came from inside their heads rather than from the creature itself. The beast recoiled, just enough for Colt to break free, scrambling back to the others, blood staining his leg.

  "We have to go!" Reyes shouted, his face pale.

  Hale didn't argue. "Move!"

  They ran, not daring to look back. The creature's voice followed them, a whisper that crawled beneath their skin. It didn’t chase, but they knew it watched. Listened.

  They didn’t stop until they reached the edge of the city, gasping for breath, blood pounding in their ears. Colt slumped against the wall, grimacing in pain.

  "What the hell was that?" Jace asked, his voice sharp with fear and adrenaline.

  "I don't know," Hale said, his voice rough. "But it wasn't like the others."

  "It didn't even have eyes," Reyes said, his voice hollow. "How did it know where we were? How did it move like that?"

  No one had answers. Only fear.

  Hale glanced back at the city, his expression grim. "We need to tell the others. We need to warn them."

  Colt let out a low, bitter laugh. "Warn them about what? That there’s something worse out there? Something we can’t fight?"

  "Exactly," Hale said. "Because next time, we might not get away."