The group emerged from the basement, only to find the door at the end of the hall straining under the assault of the creatures outside. The steel buckled and groaned as Xenomorphs, Upgraded Feroxmalis, and the vicious Bone Splitters pounded relentlessly. Their hisses and growls echoed through the hall, sending shivers down everyone’s spines.
"We’re trapped," Jack muttered, scanning the area frantically.
A sudden hiss from behind froze the group in place. Cornered on both sides, they were running out of options—until The Host noticed a narrow staircase leading to the roof.
"There!" he pointed, urgency in his voice. Without hesitation, they sprinted toward it, knowing they had little time before the horde would breach the basement entirely.
The door shattered just as they reached the stairwell, and the creatures flooded into the building. Soap and Ghost pivoted, laying down suppressing fire to slow the oncoming tide of Xenomorphs, Feroxmalis warriors, and Bone Splitters. The creatures moved with terrifying speed, their claws raking against the walls as they charged.
“Go, go!” Ghost barked as the others began ascending the stairs.
Rogue Wolf, trailing behind the group, dropped a quick explosive charge on the steps. As he hurried up, the bomb detonated, triggering a deafening explosion that obliterated the staircase and sent a wave of fire roaring through the lower level. The creatures closest to the blast were blown apart, and a massive inferno raged in their wake. But some were undeterred. Daring Xenomorphs and Feroxmalis leapt through the fire, their flesh ablaze but their determination unbroken, relentlessly pursuing the group.
The group reached the roof, bursting through the door into the open air. Skyler spun, slicing the head off a burning Feroxmalis with a single fluid motion of his cosmic katana. The creature’s body dropped at his feet, but there was no time to pause.
Soap and Ghost took point near the edge of the roof, unleashing a barrage of bullets at the horde climbing the building's walls. More and more Upgraded Feroxmalis warriors and Xenomorphs clawed their way up, their sleek bodies glistening in the dim light as they closed in from below.
"This isn’t going to hold," Soap growled between shots, his voice tight with urgency.
Necroclaw, eyes scanning for an escape route, noticed a ruined building just across from their position. It was badly damaged, with parts of it caved in from some past explosion, but it offered their only hope. The gap between the two rooftops was wide, but if they jumped with enough momentum, they could make it.
"We need to jump!" Necroclaw shouted over the chaos. "Trust me! If we run fast enough, we’ll make it to that building!"
The others were too busy fighting to respond immediately. Necroclaw, not waiting for objections, bolted for the edge of the roof and leaped off, diving through the air toward the shattered structure across from them. His body sailed through the wind, and he crashed through a broken window, landing with a rough roll on the other side.
"Move! Follow him!" The Host commanded, understanding there was no other option.
One by one, the group followed Necroclaw’s lead. Skyler and Fernando were next, their katanas slicing through the last of the creatures before they sprinted forward and jumped. Tux, Vesper, and Rogue Wolf made their way across, each landing roughly but safely within the ruins. As they leaped, the sound of bullets echoed behind them as Soap and Ghost covered their escape.
With the creatures still swarming up the sides of the building, Soap tossed a grenade over the edge, blowing several Xenomorphs off the wall before turning to Ghost.
"Time to go!" Soap shouted, nodding toward the edge.
Ghost gave a quick, sharp nod and the two sprinted to the roof’s edge, jumping just as the creatures breached the rooftop in full force. They flew through the air, landing hard but alive within the safety of the wrecked building.
As the group took cover, catching their breath amidst the rubble, they watched as the swarm of creatures reached the edge of the rooftop they had just abandoned. For now, the gap between the buildings kept the horde at bay, but they knew it wouldn't last forever.
"This building won’t hold them for long," Necroclaw said, wiping the dust from his clothes as he eyed the crumbling walls. "But we’ve bought ourselves some time."
"What now?" Tux asked, still panting from the escape.
Skyler held the artifact tightly in his hand, glancing down at the sphere that seemed to pulse with an unknown energy. "We move quickly. We need to figure out what this thing does—and find a safer place to regroup."
The distant screeches and howls of the creatures echoed in the night air. They knew the enemy wasn’t far behind. Their only chance of survival was to keep moving, to stay ahead of the ever-growing danger.
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A few more chapters to go, 20 is the goal.
