2025-11-17 20:39:57
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BEYOND BEAST OR MAN
As he reached the damp, shadowed spot where he had gunned down a soldier just hours earlier, he was met with a sight that stole the air from his lungs. Instead of the lifeless body, or even the possibility that the soldier's colleagues had retrieved it, something far more sinister awaited him. Only a bloodless, skeletal skull lay on the dark earth. Just hours ago, he had watched the man fall; now, only this macabre relic remained. He reached out with a trembling hand, tracing the clean, unmarred bone. A cold dread, unlike anything he'd ever known, seized him. For the first time in an age, true, primal fear took root in his heart.This wasn't the work of wild animals. There were no gnawed bones, no scattered flesh, no torn uniform scraps. If a beast had devoured him, there would have been an acrid scent of blood, a gory trail leading into the dense undergrowth. But what lay before him was pristine, chillingly clean. Only a freshly picked skull, stripped bare with impossible efficiency.
THE RETURN OF THE TIGER
The moment Kealen realized the sound of pursuit had faded into the vast, indifferent silence of the rainforest, he stopped. He didn't just slow down; he staggered to a halt, leaning heavily against the trunk of an ancient oak, the adrenaline that had fueled his flight now quickly abandoning him.The immediate problem wasn't the enemies he had narrowly escaped, but the searing pain anchoring him to the spot. Blood pulsed quickly from the two gunshot wounds in his left hand, dripping scarlet onto the emerald moss below. The loss of blood was profound, and a cold tide of weakness was washing over him, threatening to pull him under. He knew he had minutes, maybe less, before the shock overwhelmed him.Survival demanded immediate surgery. Gritting his teeth, Kealen pulled the heavy combat knife that was attached to the gun. He found a broken branch nearby, strong enough to serve as a makeshift tool, and quickly sharpened the end into a crude probe. Using the stick, he began the agonizing p
ECHOES OF ALPHA_09 FOREST
Commander Zain urgently waved the remaining few miners toward the transport plane. "Get to the shuttle! We'll handle this!"He didn't wait for confirmation. Zain sprinted toward the source of the recent, brutal exchange of gunfire, his rifle held high. He reached the clearing and found some of his men already gathered, grimly staring down at a figure on the forest floor. The scene was immediate and final."Report! What in God's name is happening?" Zain demanded, his voice tight with controlled fury."It's Officer Mack, Commander," Jarvis reported, his expression hardened. "We heard the shot and converged immediately. He was already gone. Looks like a close-range ambush."Zain stared down at Mack's lifeless body, a cold fury rising in his chest. They were here for a simple extraction, yet the resistance had escalated into murder."Sweep the perimeter," Zain commanded, his voice dangerous. "Search everywhere. Move in pairs. Kill anything that moves, and double-tap anything that doesn't.
NO ESCAPE: ONLY WAR
The sound of a helicopter sliced through the desolate quiet of the forest night, jolting Major Kealen instantly awake. He looked up through the skeletal remains of the camp he had recently incinerated, realizing the metallic behemoth wasn't merely passing; it was descending, rapidly. The throbbing bass of the rotors hammered against the dense canopy, signaling the arrival of the enemy he had hoped to welcome since last year.Kealen scrambled to his feet. He knew the stakes were mortally high. Those men, miners and accompanying security, would be consumed by rage upon seeing the devastation he had caused. They wouldn't bother with questions. If they landed and spotted him, the saboteur who had reduced their operations base, their equipment, and their supplies to ash, they would not waste a single second before delivering a hail of bullets on his head.He ran, swift and low, toward the wreckage of the main supply hut. He needed a weapon, anything that wasn't splintered wood or blackened
PRICE OF SURVIVAL
Two weeks had passed, yet there was no sign of human presence, not even the distant sound of machinery or voices echoed in the Alpha-09 forest. Major Kealen was deeply confused, constantly wondering what could be delaying their arrival. He had lived in the crude shelter for the weeks without incident. Not even a single wild animal had attacked him.The tiger seems now more like a massive, powerful dog than a predator. They slept comfortably together, and every morning, the tiger would venture out and reliably return with a kill. Kealen made full use of the supplies the miners had stocked in the hut, operating under the fatalistic belief that his life was forfeit regardless; there was no need to reserve anything for men that would eventually determined to kill him. He knew that one day they must surely land, and he was prepared to face them, anytime, any day.For the rest of the year, the Alpha-09 forest was peaceful and strangely calm for Major Kealen. He had mastered its subtleties,
THE SOLDIER'S LAST STAND
Major Kealen stooped, picking up a sharp piece of quartz from the jungle floor. He used it to chip away deliberately at the exposed vein of raw gold. He raised the resultant nuggets, turning them over in the dappled light, his gaze devoid of awe, tainted only by profound despair."What is the essence of this wealth?" he muttered, his voice echoing through the dense canopy. "Riches given to a man trapped in a forest that has no end, a man who knows no freedom. The universe decides to bless me with this prosperity when it is no longer useful to me. The forest is now my territory, my new home. I don't need this. Let the universe grant me freedom instead."The tiger, his watched him as he poure out his anger, still bleeding heavily from the deep wound.Kealen instantly recognized his duty. He began his familiar search for the specific medicinal herbs he routinely used to treat his wild ally. He located the serrated leaves of the Rattlesnake Plantain, quickly harvesting a handful. He crush
