The tactical vehicle slowed down as it entered a ghost town shrouded in thin fog. Up ahead, the asphalt was barely visible, buried under hundreds of overlapping vehicle wrecks. The atmosphere was chilling; only the sound of the wind whistling through office buildings with shattered windows could be heard.​Liana braked slowly. "Nathan... look at that."​From behind the shadow of a flipped-over bus, figures started to emerge one by one. It was just a few at first, but in an instant, dozens of zombies in tattered clothes swarmed out from narrow alleys and behind ruins. Their collective growls sounded like crashing waves—hoarse and hungry.​"There are so many," Giselle whispered, her hands shaking violently as she gripped the back of Nathan’s seat. "They’re surrounding us."​Nathan watched the crowd. They weren't mutants, just ordinary zombies that moved slowly but had the advantage in numbers. The path ahead was completely blocked by a mass of rotting flesh.​"Liana, keep the engine run

"You're up?" Liana asked in a low voice, though there was a hint of a tease in her raspy tone. "How is it? Looks like you're fully charged from head to toe." Nathan walked over and sat on the edge of the roof, letting his legs dangle into the darkness below. He took a deep breath, soaking in the cold night air without feeling bothered at all. "Yeah. I feel a lot better now." Liana chuckled softly, even though her face flushed for a second as the memory of what happened in the tent flashed by. She looked away toward the ruined asphalt in the distance. "To be honest, Nathan, I still find this whole thing so weird. I mean, I’ve seen a lot of crazy stuff since the world went to hell, but this is the first time I’ve heard of a guy—or whatever you are now—having to get intimate and take a woman's body fluids just to recharge. Why does it have to be so... personal? Why can't you just eat steak or drink protein shakes like a normal person?" Nathan went quiet for a moment, staring at his o

"Liana... Giselle..." Nathan’s voice was raspy, nearly drowned out by his own short, heavy gasps.He crawled toward the driver’s seat and saw Liana slumped over, her head resting on a deflated airbag. Nathan pressed his fingers to her neck, feeling a pulse—weak, but still there. He then turned toward the back seat and found Giselle curled up in a protective stance, eyes shut, but breathing steadily."Good," Nathan whispered, a flicker of relief cutting through the pain. "You guys stay here."Nathan kicked the warped car door until it flew out onto the asphalt. As soon as his feet hit the ground, a massive shadow swallowed him whole. Standing in front of him was a creature that looked more like a walking mountain of muscle than a human. It stood nearly fifteen feet tall, with skin as thick as armor and arms wider than old oak trunks. Its eyes glowed a fiery red behind folds of swollen flesh.[Analysis: Juggernaut species detected. Classification: Military Experiment - Project Titan.]T

​"You won't be able to run from here, you failed experiment!" the military leader shouted from behind his line of troops. He gave a hand signal toward the darkening sky.​Suddenly, the sound of wind slicing through the air echoed from atop the shipping containers. Two giant shadows plummeted down at terrifying speed. THUD! THUD! The impact of their landing sent massive cracks through the asphalt and kicked up thick clouds of dust in every direction. Two creatures stood right in front of the officer, acting as an impenetrable wall.​"Deal with the man," the leader ordered with a sly grin as he stepped back toward his armored vehicle. "And make sure the two girls behind him die painfully. Squad, fall back! Let these predators feast."​Nathan narrowed his eyes, scanning the two figures in front of him. The first mutant was lean yet athletic, with pale skin and sharp, blade-like spikes protruding along its spine. From its hands grew curved, twenty-centimeter claws that glinted sharply und

"This dock is about to be crawling with soldiers. Their core units are on standby in the eastern hills, just waiting for the order to level this whole place," Anna said, adjusting her tactical goggles. She pointed toward the western horizon, where rotating spotlights cut through the dim light.Liana stepped forward, her hands still shaking as she gripped her rifle. "Then where are we supposed to go? Our car is totaled, and I'm sure every land exit is already blocked."Anna gave a thin smirk, the kind that said she always had a Plan B. "We aren't going by land. There’s a transport chopper on the west side of the docks. Security is light because they don't think any survivors would be crazy enough to go near it. If we can snag it, we can fly straight to the island and land right in the heart of the lab complex."Giselle looked out at the dark, open sea, where the silhouette of the military island loomed like a lurking giant. "Is the chopper safe? I mean, what about their air defense?""