The alley was painted black and red. Blood pooled around Nikolai's boots, mixing with dark and sticky ichor that clung to the concrete and ran in greasy rivulets toward the open street.
Brian's hammer dripped with gore. Alexei was already knuckle-deep in the remains of a mutant, fangs bared, his movements fluid, yet almost lazy despite the carnage.
The monsters poured in from the sewer, windows and surrounding storm drains; it wasn't normal by any sense of the word. Nikolai could smell it—a heavy, corrupt scent under the blood. Something ancient, wrong, leaking into S-City's veins.
"Back up!" Brian barked, planting himself between a trio of cowering civilians and a fresh pack of things with too many legs and eyeless faces. "We gotta clear a path out!"
Alexei grunted, dodging a talon, his fist crashing through a mutant's ribcage with sickening force. "They're getting faster."
A rumble shook the ground, causing Nikolai to stumble, staring at the end of the alley.
