Zero's eyes snapped open to the sharp, tearing scream of a woman outside.
He bolted upright, chest heaving. "What the hell—?"
A thunderous boom shook the house like a bomb had gone off beneath the floor. The walls groaned. Glass rattled. A picture frame crashed to the ground.
Heart pounding, Zero staggered out of bed, nearly tripping over his shoes as he rushed toward the sliding door leading to the balcony.
He flung it open.
Smoke poured into the room almost instantly, thick and acrid. He stumbled forward, waving at the air in front of him as he coughed intensely, and gripped onto the cold metal railing.
What he saw nearly made his stomach drop.
The streets below were in complete chaos.
Chunks of concrete and broken glass littered the streets. A car was flipped on its side, flames licking out from under the hood as smoke rose into and covered the sky.
A body lay slumped near a shattered bus stop, unmoving—blood pooled beneath it like spilled ink. The sirens hadn't even started yet.
Zero's hands tightened around the rail.
Then—a sound. Deep and animal. A low, throaty growl that rumbled like a broken engine.
He turned toward it—and froze.
A man stood shielding a woman, arms stretched wide, trembling. In front of them loomed a creature—easily twelve feet tall, its skin a smooth, bone-white sheen.
Its limbs were too long. Too thin. And its claws… they looked like they'd been dipped in something human.
Its mouth peeled open slowly into something between a grin and a snarl.
The man raised a shaking hand in a pitiful gesture to stop it.
The creature mirrored him. Then, without pause, it slashed downward.
The sound was wet. Sharp. Final.
Zero flinched.
The pavement was painted red.
His legs buckled and he collapsed to one knee, bile rising in his throat. The monster bent low over the bodies, sniffing, twitching as if savoring the scent.
Then it stopped.
Its head jerked up. Slowly… deliberately… it turned to look up—straight at him.
Their eyes met.
It saw him.
Zero didn't have time to think. The creature's torso began to swell, its back arching as jagged, glinting red quills erupted from its spine with a sickening crunch. With no warning, it braced itself—
And fired.
"Shit!"
The balcony exploded in front of him, shards of metal and concrete slicing through the air as Zero was thrown backward into his house. He hit the ground hard, skidding across the floor. Pain lit up his arms—raw cuts, blood dripping onto the tile.
And then—he heard it.
Fast. Heavy. Getting closer.
Pattering claws on concrete. Something launching upward.
It was coming.
It was coming for him.
He had to move. Now.
Zero managed to push himself off the floor, his entire body screaming in pain. He forced himself upright, staggering forward on shaking legs as the floor creaked under him.
Behind him, the creature stepped onto the balcony—its claws sank into the concrete with a grinding crunch, cracking the stone like drywall. It crouched low, sniffing the air.
It could smell him.
Zero limped toward the stairs, his breaths ragged. The thing snarled behind him—a guttural sound that crawled beneath his skin.
He turned the corner—
—and slipped.
"No—!"
He slipped and crashed down the stairs, hitting each step hard before landing flat on his back. Everything ached.
Before he could catch his breath, the creature landed right beside him with a heavy, bone-shaking thud.
Dust shot up around them.
Zero looked up—coming face to face with the beast.
Then its mouth began to split.
Not open—split. Like a blooming, blood-slicked flower, petal after petal peeling back to reveal concentric rings of teeth. Too many. All twitching and wet.
It lunged.
Zero rolled instinctively, the creature's jaws snapping shut where his torso had been a second before. With no time to think, he kicked out with everything he had left—his foot slammed into its face with a crack.
The thing didn't flinch.
It screeched and slashed—razor claws tearing into his leg. Blood spattered across the floor as Zero screamed, crawling backward, eyes wide and desperate.
He reached out blindly—his hand gripped cold steel.
A fireplace poker.
Without thinking, he swung it up and jammed it straight into the creature's skull.
It shrieked.
The sound was pure violence. The poker sank in deep, splitting through its bone-white head with a sickening crunch.
It staggered, claws flailing wildly as it tried to open its mouth—but the movement only drove the weapon deeper.
Zero didn't wait.
He dragged himself backward, clawing at the wall until he reached the hallway, half-hopping, half-crawling toward the last door on the left.
The bathroom.
He threw himself inside and slammed the door shut just as the creature's shadow filled the hallway.
He locked it, then braced his back against it, breathing hard, his leg throbbing, blood soaking through his pants.
A loud bang slammed against the bathroom door.
It was back.
Zero's eyes darted around the room. He spotted the small window above the tub and didn't hesitate—he shoved himself up, stumbling toward it as the creature rammed the door again.
His fingers, covered in his own blood, fumbled with the lock.
Another slam hit the door. The wood cracked, and a dent started to cave in.
"Please… please don't," Zero muttered, voice barely holding steady.
He got the last lock undone and shoved the window up, the cold air slapping his face.
He started climbing through, but the door behind him blew open with a loud crash. Wood shattered. The thing forced its head in, jaws snapping inches from him.
"Shit—!" Zero kicked off the tub, scrambling through the window just in time. He landed hard outside, the impact jarring his whole body.
Knocking the breath right out of him.
Behind him, the creature screeched and thrashed, though it was helpless as it was now stuck-- far too big to escape.
Zero rolled onto his side, chest rising and falling like he'd just run a marathon. Everything hurt. But he couldn't stop. He had to move.
Limping forward, one step at a time, he disappeared into the chaos outside—into a street torn apart by smoke, blood, and fire.