Branches whipped past in a blur.
Bat moved like a shadow tearing through the forest, one arm locked firmly around Nick as the ground barely seemed to touch his feet.
Wind howled in Nick's ears.
Nick said through clenched teeth, "How are you moving this fast—?"
Bat didn't answer.
Behind them—
Something massive crashed through the trees.
Getting closer.
Bat's eyes flicked forward.
Then he saw it.
A cave.
Half-hidden between jagged rock formations, its mouth dark and narrow.
Bat adjusted course instantly.
In one sharp motion, he cut sideways and dove into the cave entrance.
Gravel scattered under his boots as he slid them both behind a thick stone outcrop deeper inside.
Then Bat raised two fingers slowly to his lips.
Nick froze.
Understood.
Both of them lowered their presence, breathing shallow and controlled.
Outside…
Heavy steps approached.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Tracking.
Bat's hand lowered quietly to the standard firearm at his side — the one he had recovered earlier.
The cave grew colder.
Then—
A shadow stretched across the entrance.
Nick's jaw tightened.
The creature stepped inside.
Fully.
Its limbs bent at wrong angles, joints shifting with wet, unnatural sounds. Its head tilted slowly, scanning the darkness.
Listening.
Searching.
Bat didn't move.
Didn't breathe deeper.
Didn't blink.
Seconds dragged like hours.
The creature took another step forward.
Stone cracked softly beneath its weight.
Nick's pulse ticked once harder.
Still…
They waited.
Then—
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Gunfire erupted from outside the cave.
Both Bat and Nick's eyes snapped toward the entrance.
Soldiers.
Rounds slammed into the creature's back in rapid succession, dark fluid spraying across the cave floor.
The creature froze.
Its head twitched.
Once.
Twice.
Then it turned violently toward the cave entrance.
And then—
It SCREAMED.
The sound ripped through the cave like tearing metal.
Before Bat or Nick could react—
The creature lunged.
Not at them.
Past them.
Straight out of the cave.
BOOM!
Wind and dust blasted inward as the monster burst back into the forest at full speed.
Silence crashed down behind it.
For two full seconds, neither of them moved.
Gunfire continued outside the cave.
Rapid.
Desperate.
Then—
A scream.
Human.
Cut off violently.
Nick finally exhaled, the breath leaving him like something he'd been holding for far too long.
Nick whispered, "…What the hell was that?"
Bat's eyes remained on the cave entrance, expression unreadable.
Bat said quietly, "If I had to guess… military."
Nick frowned. "Military? Out here?"
Another distant burst of gunfire echoed through the forest.
Closer this time.
Nick swallowed. "Do you think they can handle that thing?"
Bat didn't even hesitate.
Bat said flatly, "Not in a million years."
A beat passed.
Then Bat added, almost thoughtfully, "…unless they brought something special with them."
Nick's stomach tightened.
Nick muttered, "Great. That makes me feel so much better."
Another distant scream tore through the air.
Nick shifted slightly, unease creeping into his voice.
Nick said, "So… uh… how exactly are we getting out of here?"
Bat's head tilted faintly, listening.
Really listening.
Silence stretched.
Then—
Bat turned deeper into the cave.
Bat said calmly, "We're not going back the way we came."
Nick blinked. "What?"
Bat started walking.
Bat said, "There's a waterfall deeper inside the cave. I can hear it."
Nick stared at him. "…You're kidding."
Bat didn't slow down.
Bat said, "Caves with running water usually have multiple exits."
He glanced back once.
Bat finished, "If we go deeper… we live."
Nick immediately moved after him.
Neither of them looked back toward the cave entrance again.
— FLASHBACK: GOVERNMENT FACILITY —
Cold white lights flooded the underground command room.
Screens flickered.
Warning symbols pulsed red.
Official 1 spoke sharply, "Confirm the anomaly location."
Official 2 responded, fingers flying across the console. "Target confirmed inside Grimveil Forest. Energy signature matches unknown extraterrestrial class."
Official 3 leaned forward. "Threat level?"
Official Two didn't hesitate.
"…High."
The room went quiet for half a second.
Then—
Official 4 spoke firmly, "Deploy suppression squad immediately."
A uniformed officer near the door hesitated.
Government Officer said carefully, "Sir… standard soldiers may not be enough."
Official 4 eyes hardened.
Official 4 replied, "I am aware."
A pause.
Then the order came.
Official 4 said coldly, "Take V with you."
The room stiffened.
Government Officer swallowed. "…Sir… with respect— V is unstable. He doesn't follow—"
Official 4 cut him off.
"I don't care."
His voice dropped to ice.
"I am not losing expensive equipment and trained personnel because of one creature."
Then—
Official 4 finished, "Bring the anomaly back."
His gaze sharpened.
"Dead or alive."
The officer straightened immediately.
"…Yes, sir."
PRESENT:
The soldiers were getting slaughtered.
They wore specialized combat suits — sleek black armor layered tight to the body, flexible plating reinforced at the chest, shoulders, and thighs. Not bulky. Not slow.
Engineered for speed.
For strength.
For survival.
Servo-motors hissed with every movement, enhancing their physical output far beyond normal human limits.
Against humans…
They would have been monsters.
Against this thing—
They were meat.
The creature tore through one soldier like wet paper.
Armor screamed.
Metal bent.
Blood sprayed across the forest floor.
Another soldier opened fire wildly.
"CONTACT! CONTACT—!"
A distorted limb punched straight through his chest plate.
Out the back.
The suit's enhancement systems sparked violently before going dead.
Panic spread through the remaining squad.
"WHERE IS V?!"
"WE NEED SUPPORT NOW!"
One soldier slammed his fist against his comm unit.
Soldier shouted desperately, "V! V, do you hear me?! Come in!"
The creature turned slowly toward them.
Closer.
Closer.
The soldier's voice cracked.
"WE ARE TAKING HEAVY LOSSES! WE NEED YOUR HELP RIGHT NOW!"
Static.
Then—
"…Void! Are you deaf or something?!"
Silence.
For half a second.
"Hey…"
Void said lazily, "You're screaming in my ear like I can't see it."
A soldier gasped over the line. "Then MOVE!"
A pause.
Leaves shifted.
Then—
The forest went still.
Not quiet.
Still.
The creature froze mid-step.
Its head tilted.
Listening.
A blur dropped from above.
Not loud.
Not dramatic.
Just sudden.
A figure landed between the soldiers and the monster.
One hand in his pocket.
The other adjusting the earpiece in his comm.
Black combat coat.
No helmet.
No visible weapon.
Void glanced at the half-gutted squad behind him.
Void clicked his tongue.
Void said, disappointed, "Damn. You guys lasted… what? Two minutes?"
The creature let out a low, distorted growl.
Void finally looked at it.
Really looked at it.
Silence pressed down over the clearing.
The soldiers felt it.
The shift.
The pressure.
Void tilted his head slightly.
Void said, almost curious, "Huh."
The creature lunged.
Fast enough to tear the air apart.
Even the soldiers flinched.
Void didn't dodge.
The claw slammed into him.
BOOM.
The impact blasted the ground open.
Void's body vanished into the trees like a ragdoll — smashing through trunk after trunk in a violent chain of explosions.
Wood splintered.
Leaves erupted.
Silence fell.
One soldier whispered, stunned—
"…No way."
Another swallowed hard.
"…he's dead."
Slowly…
They turned back toward the creature.
And froze.
The monster wasn't moving.
Its arm…
Was wrong.
Bent.
Twisted.
Shaking violently.
Like something inside it had shattered on impact.
The limb hung uselessly, twitching in broken angles — like a human who had just punched a moving truck at full force.
The creature let out a distorted, confused screech.
It didn't understand.
None of them did.
Then—
From the settling smoke in the distance…
Clap.
…Clap.
…Clap.
Boots crunched softly over broken wood.
Void stepped out of the dust cloud, rolling his shoulder once like he'd just finished stretching.
Completely fine.
Void exhaled slowly.
Then he smiled.
Void said lightly,
"Alright…"
He cracked his neck.
"…let's beging..