Unix stood before the kingdom’s walls, his eyes gleaming with excitement, placing a hand on the stone.

  "It's... it's truly magnificent. I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. Such harmony in the ornamentation."

  He began walking around the kingdom walls until he reached the gate. It was shattered and broken, claw marks covering it from all directions. Unix climbed over the ruins and crossed the threshold, jumping inside the kingdom and glancing around. Destruction was everywhere broken houses, streets filled with skeletal remains, most of them shattered or missing many parts.

  "Hell... What happened here? I don’t think anyone survived."

  Unix turned to the side and saw the skeleton of a knight. Part of its skull and ribcage were missing. The armor was still on, but it was heavily damaged and crushed, as if something massive had trampled it. A look of disdain appeared on Unix’s face.

  "Whatever that knight was fighting... I doubt he won."

  Unix looked forward. "I’d better keep walking."

  He continued moving through the ruined kingdom. Everything was destroyed. He noticed a narrow alley.

  "Maybe if I go through it, I’ll cut the path to the center of the kingdom."

  Unix stepped into the alley and began walking. It branched many times, but eventually led him to the other side. He came upon a large square, with a statue of a knight in the center. The statue was broken and damaged. Unix approached it, noticing a golden plaque with engraved words. He began to read:

  "Knight of the Northern Shrine, Liberator of the Lands, The Promised Prince of the North, Savior of Humanity – [Don Rick Neuhaus] – may your soul live among us forever."

  A strange chill ran through Unix’s body, as if the words were pulsing with life. He lifted his head to look at the statue’s face.

  "Looks like that man was a badass... I wonder how he met his end."

  While Unix was observing the statue, someone was watching him from a broken window. Unix kept staring for a few seconds, then moved on. He wandered through the square until he heard footsteps. He turned quickly and saw part of a dog’s body disappear into an alley.

  "A dog?! There are still living animals? I thought the beasts devoured them all."

  With sparkling eyes and a wide grin, Unix approached the alley and peeked in… but it wasn’t a dog.

  It was a massive beast with the body of a dog, green fur, red eyes, and stone-like structures on its back that resembled drill heads. That "dog"... or what he thought was a dog, was feeding on a human corpse. Its fangs ripped through the flesh mercilessly, blood dripping from its mouth. Unix’s eyes widened in horror, his breath caught in his throat. He took slow steps backward, trying not to attract the beast’s attention.

  Suddenly... he stumbled on a rock and fell. The noise alerted the creature, and it turned toward him, baring its bloody fangs.

  Unix scrambled to his feet only to find the beast facing him, its red eyes locked on him. Painful memories filled Unix’s mind… memories of a monster from that night. Sweat poured from his forehead. Suddenly, the beast roared in his face, then stepped back, turned around, and walked away.

  "It’s… leaving? But why? That’s not how monsters behave..."

  Suddenly, a man shouted from the top of a building:

  "Boy! Run! The beast didn’t leave it was calling its offspring!"

  Unix stood in shock, not understanding. Then he began to hear many footsteps… repeated howling. Suddenly, ten similar beasts, smaller in size but still larger than a full-grown dog, charged toward him.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Realizing the danger, Unix snapped out of his daze, got to his feet, and started running,the chase had begun.

  Unix ran through the square into the streets, the monsters following close behind. While running, he thought:

  "Who was that? A human? A survivor of the catastrophe?"

  The man shouted again:

  "Watch out! Behind you!"

  Unix snapped back to reality and looked behind , one of the monsters’ mouths was inches from his face! He ducked just in time and kept running. The monsters drew closer, and the man yelled again:

  "Drop the bag! It’s slowing you down!"

  Unix threw his bag at one of the beasts, which grabbed it, while the others tore it apart. Unix focused all his strength on his legs, picked up his speed, and shouted to the man running across the rooftops:

  "Help me!"

  The words burst out of Unix with a raw desire to stay alive.

  "If I come down, we’ll both die! Your running is your salvation!"

  The man stopped running and pointed to Unix’s left:

  "There! The kingdom’s port! Go there! Stay alive! I’ll bring help!"

  Unix ran as fast as he could, turned into an alley, and kept going, his heart pounding like a drum… his whole life on the line. He looked back to see the beasts chasing him, hungry for his flesh.

  He slammed into a wall at a turn and fell. One of the beasts seized the chance and accelerated. Unix got to his feet just as the beast lunged like a spear. He dodged at the last second, and the beast crashed through the wall.

  Unix kept running, reached a dead end, but noticed a broken door to the side. He went in and found himself inside a house, passing through to the street. He looked right ,he saw a road. He looked left… and saw the port! He smiled, a smile of hope rising from his heart.

  "The port… I’m saved!"

  He tried to move his legs, but suddenly… one of the beasts burst through the house wall. It locked eyes with Unix. The beast stepped forward, and Unix backed up. Another step. Unix turned to run, but the beast leaped over him and pinned him down, jaws wide open, saliva dripping on his face, his heart about to explode from fear.

  "Is… is this the end? Is my life ending here? Why? How? Where? Questions I’ve asked all my life… is this the answer to everything?"

  He glanced at a rock beside him.

  "No! I choose (No)! The answer is no!"

  He grabbed the rock, turned to face the beast. Its foul breath almost made him vomit. The monster roared in his face.

  "Roar! Roar! Roar! Why can’t you just shut the fuck up !"

  Unix slammed the rock into the beast’s face and pushed it off. He jumped to his feet and ran. The rest of the monsters burst through the broken wall and gave chase.

  Unix ran… and ran… and ran. Nonstop. With every ounce of will to survive.

  "I’m close! The port! I can see it!"

  Suddenly, a beast leapt down from a rooftop, blocking his path. Unix looked back the pack was closing in. He looked to his right and saw…

  the herd approaching, looks right, and sees a house with an open door. Without hesitation, he enters, closes the door behind him, and retreats...

  The sound of howling and banging on the door can be heard... a moment of silence... suddenly, a monster's head bursts through the door, and another breaks through the window. Unix turns around and rushes up the stairs, finding himself in a hallway with four rooms. He tries to open their doors while hearing the sound of wood tearing behind him. He tries each door, but none open. Unix turns around to see the monsters have reached the top of the stairs.

  The monsters advance slowly, as if they know there's no escape for unix. His feet, his hands, his entire body trembles and sweats as they draw closer. He steps back until his back hits the wall at the end of the hallway. Unix sits on the ground, stretching his hand forward as if begging them to stop, tears streaming down his face.

  "Am I going to die here? Today? Like this?… But… but… I chose not to… I don't want to die here, I want to live, I want to survive!"

  A monster approaches unix, opens its mouth in front of his face, then lunges at him... Unix shuts his eyes… but…

  Suddenly, everything stops, as if time itself has frozen.

  A glowing woman, as if made of pure white light, walks between the monsters until she reaches unix, whose head is now inside the monster's open jaws. She touches the monster, causing it to shift behind her, then begins to speak:

  "A flower falls in the devil's garden… the desire to stay alive… to live… I can help with that…

  Yonex, our little hope, I shall give you the gift that will help you survive.

  Bear my blessing, for your sake, and for all of humanity.

  Today, the hope of mankind will be born… unix Voldgard!"

  She touches unix’s palm with her hand, and everything returns to normal.

  The monster finds itself biting air, confused by what just happened only to be suddenly hit by a powerful gust of wind coming from Unix’s hand, violently pushing them back.

  On the rooftops, men are running. One of them says:

  "Are you sure he's at the port?"

  The same man who helped unix replies:

  "If the monsters didn’t eat him, he’s probably still there."

  Suddenly, a strong wave crashes into the men, making them feel crushed by an overwhelming pressure.

  The man who helped unix is thrown backward.

  "This… this is impossible… it’s spiritual pressure! And it’s very strong!"

  Underground, in the lair of the monsters who was chasing unix, more monsters begin to awaken from the pressure.

  Beneath the sea, sleeping sea creatures sense the pressure and awaken all at once.

  In the general iron mass, "Slasher" stands on the deck with many soldiers, watching the sea as they approach the kingdom's port.

  Suddenly, the pressure wave reaches them.

  "It’s… spiritual pressure! And it’s extremely intense!

  How can anyone possess such massive spiritual energy?!"

  Inside the house, unix has no idea what’s happening.

  The monsters try to advance, but the air pushes them back with force.

  "What is this? What’s happening to me?...

  It feels like something is flowing through my veins nonstop..."

  Suddenly, something shines in unix’s hand, like a tiny galaxy forming in his palm.

  Shiny black threads gather in his hand, forming a glowing black sphere.

  "Push it!... Push it!"

  Unix hears those words as if someone is whispering in his ear.

  "Push it?"

  Unix moves his hand and gently pushes the sphere it shoots forward at incredible speed, then stops in front of the monsters, begins to glow, and releases heat that incinerates everything even the monsters.

  The sphere starts to swell and expand, as if unstable, emitting a strange sound… then suddenly vanishes.

  A massive heat wave melts everything in the direction of the monsters.

  Unix watches them their skins melt, their flesh falls off, then their bones vaporize…

  A thunderous explosion shakes the back of the house, visible even to the men on the rooftops.

  Unix, in a state of shock, sees the rear half of the house gone and burned, while the part where he sat remains untouched.

  The wall behind him cracks and collapses.

  He stands up, turns around and sees the men on the rooftops in shock.

  He raises his hand, looks at his palm, and whispers:

  "What… was that?"