Chapter 5: What the hell?
A beam of light pierces through the oppressive darkness of the train station as Henrick turns the flashlight on. Father David clutches his cross as he mutters prayers under his breath. Henrick tenses as he hears the skittering of unseen creatures, reminded of his encounter with the rat horde.
"Did you see what happened, Father? I was asleep when everything suddenly collapsed." Henrick whispers as he keeps an eye out for hostiles. Father David grimaces as he thinks back to a day before. "It happened so fast, I was on my way to the church when the skies turned purple. A dark purple wave spread throughout the city and some people started...changing." He finishes with a shiver as he stares at his hands.
Concussive energy starts building and disappears on the Father’s hands as Henrick notes the priest’s turbulent thoughts. "Hey, what can you do? New York, is filled with all kinds of weird shit." David smiles at Henrick’s attempt at humour "Thank you for trying to cheer me up." then goes back to muttering his prayers.
They pass the toll machines, their faces set in grim lines, as they see bodies littered on the platform. Dozens of what used to be humans, mutated beyond recognition. Henrick crouches down and inspects the corpses, raising a brow as he sees puncture wounds.
"What is it?" Father David asks as Henrick stands with a confused look. The soldier says nothing as he continues checking the other bodies. After a checking a few more, Henrick looks at David and says "I’d understand if bullets were used to kill the mutated creatures, but these wounds are in line with what an arrow can make." David shakes his head in disbelief "Arrows? In 2025?"
Henrick nods "That’s why I’m so confused. I’ve fought these things. I could barely kill the first one I fought, even though I could break concrete. An arrow isn’t getting through its hide." Father David rubs his chin as he throws out a theory. "What if they’re like us? Suddenly possessing abilities? Maybe arrows are their thing."
Their discussion is interrupted as a gutteral bellow echoes through the metro. "GGRRAAAAAHHHHHH!!!" Father David jumps a little as the roar sends shivers down his spine. Without warning, a large heavily mutated humanoid with a gaping maw bursts through a wall and sends David flying towards the train tracks.
Henrick barely has time to react when the creature lunges and lands a heavy blow on his chest. The soldier skips across the floor and slams heavily into the toll machines, his flashlight flying into the distance. Machinery and sparks mix with blood as Henrick shakily gets up from the floor, his chest now sporting shallow knuckle wounds.
Unable to see where it is, Henrick isn’t able to dodge a vicious blow to his head, sending him face first into the ground. Snarling with rage, Henrick unleashes a blast of lightning that knocks his attacker back and briefly illuminates the surroundings, finally revealing the creature.
The mutated being’s skin glistens with a dark viscous liquid. Its entire body is covered with bony protrusions, its arms reach the ground, its knuckles ending in sharp spikes, while its eyes glow a malevolent red. Father David slowly gets up and shouts out, "What in the Lord’s name is that?!?!", as Henrick rolls out of the way from a vicious smash. The soldier then leaps up and lands a brutal electrical knee to the creature’s head, dazing it.