"Damn it, they shot down my drone," Molly growled, her voice full of venom—as if someone had just kicked her favorite dog.
"Kantsuke, you okay?" Izzy asked, crouched beside Molly in the dusty, abandoned gas station manager's office. She swept her eyes across the eerie scene outside: faded energy drink posters peeled from the window glass, and a handful of zombies shuffled through the overgrown parking lot. There weren't many of them, but it was enough to set her on edge.
"Still breathing," Kantsuke whispered into the radio.
Dressed in matte-black tactical gear, the iron-legged soldier lay prone on a mist-covered hill about 200 meters from the derelict resort building. Through the scope, he watched three shadowy figures slip past a cargo van into what looked like a ruined flower garden.
He pulled up the green scarf Mari had bought for him, shielding his face from the cold moisture of the thickening fog, and adjusted the rifle's angle upward toward the rooftop.
What the hell…?
His finger froze on the trigger. Perched on the peak of the roof was a hunched, shadowy figure—like a giant bird. It dipped its head briefly toward Zota... then vanished into the darkness.
In the chilling gloom of the night, Zota exhaled sharply, his breath puffing into a white cloud. He signaled Joey and Jackson behind him to stop.
From the darkness ahead, a girl in a white lace dress stepped into their path. The dress was sleeveless, short, and dirt-stained, hanging loosely on her thin frame. She wore no shoes. Though she wasn't in a prisoner's uniform, the way she hung her head—and the grimy brown stains across her yellowing dress—told Zota she had definitely come from a cage.
"Are you alright, sweetheart?" Zota called gently.
Then her body began to convulse violently.
Shit—
He raised his rifle.
He thought she was a zombie. But as her head lifted into the moonlight, he saw those deep-black eyes, and a grotesque smile split her face—mouth stretching ear to ear to reveal rows of jagged teeth like an alien.
RATATATATAT!
Three rifles opened fire. The shots weren't perfect, but they were far from amateur hour.
"Where the hell did she go?" Zota's eyes widened.
The girl vanished in a blink—one second standing, the next gone. Then suddenly, she was behind Jackson.
"AAAHHH!"
Jackson's scream made Zota whirl around.
"JACKSON, NO!"
The girl's hand had pierced straight through his back—her fingers wrapped around his still-beating heart.
"You monster!" Zota bellowed, opening fire with Joey beside him.
The white-dressed demon held Jackson's body up as a shield, bullets slamming into her victim's lifeless chest.
Grrrrk…
The thing snarled like a beast and hurled the body like a bowling ball. Jackson's corpse slammed into Zota and Joey, knocking them to the ground.
"Shit! Goddamn monster!" Zota spat, scrambling up and reloading his M4 as Joey did the same.
"What the hell is that thing!?" Joey shouted, sweeping his rifle side to side like a rookie in a war zone.
"ZOTA, BEHIND YOU!" Joey screamed again.
The demon girl had emerged from the shadows, lunging for Zota's back.
BOOM!
The .50-cal round hit her square. Joey saw her body twist and collapse.
Rrraaaahh…
It tried to rise—shaking, limping, one leg dragging.
BOOM!
Another armor-piercing round struck it in the chest, tearing the small body apart.
Zota stared, wide-eyed, as something clattered to the ground—a silver metallic object shaped like a human heart.
"Zota, you alright?" Kantsuke's voice crackled over the radio. He was still catching his breath—he'd had to hold it to line up that lethal shot.
"Close call. Thanks, man," Zota replied, panting.
"Watch out—there's another one."
"…Shit!"
Gunfire erupted again over the radio. Kantsuke swung his scope, trying to locate the second creature.
Then a cold shiver ran down his spine.
Something was behind him.
"…Shit."Through the reflection in his rifle scope, he saw it—a black figure standing directly behind him, a five-inch combat knife gripped tight in its hand, arm already mid-swing.
You killed Ingrid… You'll pay for that…
Jeff's mind boiled with rage.
Ingrid was the doctor's masterpiece—and Jeff's favorite.
No one should get away with defiling her.
End him, Simon.
Jeff whispered the command aloud as he focused through Simon's eyes.
"Die," he growled.
In that instant, Simon lunged forward, tightening his grip on the knife, aiming straight for the coward with the sniper rifle.