They ran.Behind them, the Blood Shepherd moved through its web network with terrifying speed. Something that big shouldn't move that fast. But it did."This way!" Liam yelled, checking his equipment while running. "The extraction point is northeast!""How far?" Miko asked."Two miles!""We'll never make it," Anna gasped.The ground shook with each step the Blood Shepherd took. It was getting closer. Gaining on them despite their head start."Split up!" Aria yelled. "It can't chase all of us!""No!" Miko shouted back. "We stay together!"A web strand shot past his head. Thick as a rope. It hit a rock formation and stuck there, creating a new barrier."It's trying to trap us!" Akiya said.More web strands flew through the air. The Blood Shepherd was creating obstacles. Cutting off escape routes. Herding them like animals."Left!" Liam yelled.They turned left, avoiding a section where web strands crisscrossed the path. But that put them deeper into the zone. Further from the extraction

The alarm woke Miko at four in the morning. Not his personal alarm. The base-wide emergency system.Red lights flashing in the hallway. Sirens blaring. People running.He grabbed his gear and ran outside. Found Liam already there, looking at his portable device."What's happening?" Miko asked."Blood Shepherd Zone. Activity detected at the eastern boundary.""What kind of activity?""Movement. Toward the boundary."Anna and Akiya arrived. Then Aria. All of them dressed fast. Ready for whatever was coming."Everyone to the command center!" someone yelled.They ran with the crowd. The command center was chaos. Screens showing feeds from monitoring posts. Officers shouting orders. Equipment being prepared.Captain Rodriguez stood at the main display. He saw Miko's team and waved them over."Your timing is perfect," he said."What's going on?"Rodriguez pointed to one of the screens. It showed thermal imaging of the Blood Shepherd Zone. A massive heat signature moving through the territor

One day later, the alarm went off again.Miko was in the training room when it happened. Working on his element marriage control. Trying to push the integration further.The alarm meant one thing. Blood Shepherd Zone activity.He ran to the command center. Found his team already there. Found Captain Rodriguez looking grim."What happened?" Miko asked."Termination team went in three hours ago. Full combat deployment. Best weapons we have.""And?""Two survivors out of twelve. The rest are either dead or captured."Rodriguez pulled up footage. It showed the termination team entering the Blood Shepherd Zone. Heavily armed. Professional. Confident.The Blood Shepherd had been waiting for them.Not just waiting. It had prepared. Built traps. Positioned offspring in ambush locations. Created kill zones throughout its territory.The termination team never had a chance."It knew we were coming," Liam said."How is that possible?""Unknown. But yes, it clearly anticipated a larger response to

The debriefing started two hours after they got back. Captain Rodriguez sat at the head of the table. Three intelligence officers beside him. Recording equipment running. "Walk us through the entire mission," Rodriguez said. "Start from entry." Liam pulled out his recording equipment and connected it to the room's display. "I have video of most of it." "We'll review that later. Right now I want your observations. What the cameras might not show." Miko started. "We entered the zone through the southern access point. Immediate observation was complete silence. No ambient noise. No wraith activity." "Why is that significant?" "Because the Abyss always has background noise. Creature calls. Wind. Energy fluctuations. The Blood Shepherd Zone has none of that." "Meaning?" "Meaning the creature has eliminated all other life in its territory. Created a dead zone where only it and its offspring exist." One of the intelligence officers made notes. "Continue." "We found web structures t

The mission to contain the portal break lasted six hours.By the end, the portal was closed. The wraiths were eliminated. Civilians were evacuated. The city was saved.Miko's team did most of the heavy work. While military units established perimeters, they went into the danger zones. Cleared buildings. Rescued trapped civilians. Killed wraiths faster than they could pour through the portal.When it was over, they stood in the plaza covered in blood and ash. Exhausted but alive."Good work," Captain Rodriguez said over communication. "Transport is inbound for extraction."They flew back to Forward Base Alpha in silence. Too tired to talk. Too focused on processing what just happened.The debrief was short. Mission success. Zero casualties on their team. Minimal civilian deaths considering the situation. Command was pleased."You're being reassigned," Rodriguez told them after the debrief. "Elite unit status is now official. You'll handle specialized missions regular teams can't.""Wha