Location: Unknown

  Time of Day: Night

  A swirling red vortex cracked open above a dark street. With a low hum, four figures were spit out of the portal. THUD! Hikari and Captain crashed flat onto the cracked street, while Lumina landed gracefully in a low stance. Slayer struck the ground with one knee down.

  Hikari rubbed her head, wincing. "Ow... really? Again? Do portals have a personal grudge against me or something?"

  Captain pushed himself up with a grunt. "Hmph. At least we made it through safely."

  Slayer rose with a flourish, striking a heroic pose. "Ha! And that's how you make an entrance."

  Lumina sighed, straightening with calm precision. "Let's not lose sight of our purpose here, Slayer."

  The group stood still, scanning their surroundings. The night air was cool and dim streetlights flickered overhead, casting uneven shadows. Abandoned cars lined the road, some still burning, others with doors hanging open. Shattered glass glittered across the sidewalks, silent proof that something violent had happened here. Far in the distance, a siren wailed WUUUooo... WUUUooo... faint, distorted, almost unnatural. And from somewhere deeper in the city, distant shouts echoed between the buildings, carrying a sense of chaos.

  "...Sooo," Lumina said, arms crossed as she glanced around, "is this the famous Echohold-09 you've been going on about?" Her gaze swept across the crumbling tall buildings surrounding the city. "I expected something a bit more... pleasing to the eye, but this just feels... eerie. Not that I've ever seen a futuristic city before, but... it's nothing like Xevia."

  "Yeah, and everything's just so tall," Slayer added, looking up. "Also, every single building looks like it's falling apart, and those things with... wheels?" He jabbed a finger at a police car nearby. "What the heck are those suppose to be?"

  "Yeah, and where is everyone at anyway..." Lumina murmured, scanning the streets for any sign of life.

  A few seconds of silence passed until Captain spoke, his voice sharp. "Hikari?"

  She flinched. FWIP. Forcing a nervous laugh, she rubbed the back of her head. "Ah-haha... okay, so funny story..."

  Captain's lifted an eyebrow. "Go on."

  "I might have forgotten to focus on the exact destination before opening the portal." Hikari said with a forced smile

  "You forgot to think?!" Captain snapped, unconvinced.

  Slayer began a slow clap. CLAP... CLAP... "Awe man, nice going, Hikari. A genius level brain with zero GPS skills. I trusted my life to you, you know!" He dragged an arm dramatically across his helmet's visor.

  Lumina gave a flat stare. "How amusing. We traveled across dimensions just to end up in a..." She touched her chin, eyes sweeping the ruined street. "...place where nightmares come true. Wonderful."

  "Hey!" Hikari snapped. "I had a lot on my mind, okay? Stabilizing multidimensional energy fields, managing molecular destabilization, recalibrating harmonic frequencies-"

  "...and then you forgot to say 'take us to Echohold-09'" Captain cut in.

  "...Maybe." She admitted, scratching her cheek awkwardly.

  Then from the shadows of a side alley, a man burst into view, a pistol clutched tightly in his hands. His uniform was torn, but the badge on his chest still caught the faint light. "Hey! You guys there!" he shouted, his voice rough and panicked. "You need to get out of here quickly! You must evacuate, now!"

  The party froze, exchanging wary glances. "Wait, officer," Hikari called, stepping forward. "I'm glad you found us. But can you please tell us what happened here?"

  "I'll explain later if you really want to know," he barked, glancing over the group. "But for now, you have to move, it's too dangero-"

  SNARL! Something lunged out of the shadows beside him. A twisted figure slammed into the officer, claws tearing as his pistol clattered to the ground. His scream was cut short RUN! blood splattering across the cracked wall.

  Hikari's eyes widened. She stumbled back, her voice breaking. "W-What the... No, no, no! We have to save him!" She moved to rush forward, but Captain's hand shot out, grabbing her wrist and pulling her back.

  "Hikari, wait," he said firmly, his tone low. He nodded toward the man, eyes grim. "It's too late for him..."

  The officer's shattered groans filled the street, echoing in Hikari's ears as the figure tore him apart. She clenched her teeth and fists, turning away. "Dammit... dammit all."

  Lumina cut through the moment, voice sharp. "Hikari! I'm sorry for him but we must stay focused!" she snapped, her gaze locked on the alleyway. "There look!"

  SKREEEE! A similar figure staggered out of the alley's shadows, arms limp, legs dragging. Its eyes were cloudy green and unfocused, blood streaking down its chin. Each groan was wet and broken, like something inside had already come apart. Another figure lurched into view behind it. Then another. And then... many more.

  "What the hell..." Lumina whispered. Her gaze hardened. "They look infected... but not like any sickness I've ever seen before."

  "They don't look very talkative either," Slayer muttered. His hand tightened on his sword's hilt as he drew it free SHIIING.

  Hikari's breath caught in her throat and her voice trembled. "N-No... this isn't just any sickness. Those are... Gravehowlers. And they are very bad news."

  "Gravehowlers?" Slayer echoed. "Sounds like something you cut down before they finish their first scream."

  Captain's rifle was already raised, his expression hard. "These are gonna be a tough bunch to deal with. Those Echos are flesh-eaters. And they're not people anymore."

  Lumina's grip tightened on her blade, her gaze narrowing on the limp figures ahead. "Anything we should know about these Gravehowlers before we blindly head in?"

  Hikari's expression darkened. "Yes. Those Echos are infection-based. They spread like a plague, through blood, bites, or even exposure to contaminated fluids. Anything living can be turned. People, animals... even smaller things like birds or fish. Once it's inside, the body collapses and reanimates under the Echo's influence within minutes."

  Lumina exhaled softly. "Sounds like a pain."

  She paused, eyes flicking toward the streets swarming with movement. "And that's not all. That Echo is a Zerm-type. Meaning that they are catastrophic and reality-threatening. If they're left unchecked, they don't just wipe out a town or a city, they can end entire worlds. Every second they exist, their numbers grow. Zerm type classes are on top of the Echo class category, making them fearsome foes."

  Slayer took a stance, gripping his sword. "So basically... worst-case scenario wrapped in rotting flesh. Got it."

  "Precisely," Hikari said grimly. "If you hear 'Zerm,' it means the clock is already ticking."

  Then suddenly, the first of the infected let out a guttural SNARL!, and the horde charged forward. "And the cherry on top is that we're in the middle of an outbreak!" Hikari shouted.

  "Then we stop it with full force!" Captain barked, taking aim. "Hold the line everyone!"

  "Don't have to tell me twice!" Slayer growled, stepping forward as his hand reached over his shoulder. With a metallic CLANK, his shield locked into place.

  Lumina unsheathed her katana with a sharp SHING!, giving it a single swing. "Remember your training, everyone!"

  The team stood together and in an instant, their Emanations ignited. FWOOOSH! Flashes of pink, red, blue, and green lit up the darkened street. The first Gravehowler lunged forward, limbs swinging and mouth split open in a rasping scream. Captain moved in first, shifting his rifle into SMG mode with a sharp CLICK! He took aim, BRRT! BRRT! BRRT! A burst of gunfire tore through the air. The Echo dropped mid-lunge, blood misting the air. "Don't let their blood touch you!" he shouted. "One drop inside you, and you're infected!"

  Slayer stepped in with a wide, brutal swing SHWAAK! His blade cleaved the next Gravehowler clean in half. "Ooohhh, that's nasty! Where the hell did you come from?!"

  "Be wary of your distance!" Hikari shouted, taking position behind the team. Her pink aura flared, eyes glowing with the same hue. "Activating Aura Tech Link Drones!" From beneath her lab coat, three drones burst into existence, HUMM! spherical and metallic. Their cores pulsing with light as streams of pink aura wrapped around them. They hovered upward in a perfect triangular formation. "Lock on, my faithful drones," Hikari commanded, extending her hand forward, her voice firm.

  BEEP-BEEP! The drones chirped in unison, targeting lenses snapping into place. A moment later, beams of pink, aura-charged energy fired from their cores PEW! PEW! PEW! streaking across the battlefield. Multiple Gravehowlers shrieked RRAAGHKK! and collapsed as the precise bursts tore through them. With every shot, the drones repositioned fluidly around Hikari, weaving between debris and covering angles the team couldn't reach. Her aura flared brighter, feeding their systems, and guiding their aim. "Suppress the swarm!" she commanded. "Keep them off balance, we can't let them close in!"

  The night flared with pulses of pink fire as the drones unleashed a relentless barrage, thinning the horde while the others fought off incoming Gravehowlers. SKREEEEE! Another distorted shriek cut through the chaos. "Moving in!" Lumina called out. She was already in motion, dashing forward in a blur. In one graceful sweep, her katana sliced through multiple infected at once, SHING! SPLAT! the blade leaving a brilliant green trail that burned through the air like a comet. "They may be corpses... but they're fast," she muttered, eyes narrowing. "What kind of world breeds things like this?"

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Slayer slammed his shield into one lunging from behind. CLANG! "Hers, apparently!"

  A group of five burst out from a nearby subway entrance, clawing over each other, drawn by the noise and movement. "On your left!" Hikari yelled.

  Captain spun, "On it!" his red aura flaring as it surged through his rifle. CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! Three Gravehowlers dropped before they made it halfway across the street.

  Lumina vaulted over a wrecked car, striking mid-air as her blade flashed twice SLASH! - two clean green arcs slicing through the infected. "They just keep coming!" she shouted.

  "Then we just keep cutting!" Slayer laughed, spinning wide and carving through another wave. SWOOSH! "C'mon! It'll take more of you to break me!"

  Lumina cut down another Gravehowler beside him, her green aura flaring with every swing. "Don't let up now, everyone," she called, her voice calm but edged.

  The team carved through another wave of Gravehowlers, but even as bodies hit the ground, more poured in from the alleys. The street was chaos, gunfire, steel, snarls, and screams overlapping in one endless storm. Then... the sound changed and the horde wasn't surging anymore. Instead, dozens of Gravehowlers began staggering toward one another, clustering in the middle of the street. They piled onto a single corpse, shoving, clawing, screeching, not to feed, but to merge.

  "What the hell are they doing?!" Slayer shouted, raising his shield as he cut another one down.

  "They're... converging," Hikari said, her voice unsteady. Then her eyes widened in horror. "Oh no. This is bad... They're beginning to..."

  The Gravehowlers twisted and tangled together, their screams blending into one loud, awful sound. Arms split apart, bones cracked, and limbs started to fuse and bend in ways they shouldn't. Dark veins spread through the pile like roots crawling over a dead body.

  Lumina's grip on her katana tightened. "It's mutating..."

  The mass swelled and split the cracked street beneath it. From the pile of bodies, a towering green, humanoid shape began to rise - tall, twisted, and covered in shifting layers of flesh. Faces of the creatures it had absorbed pushed through its shoulders and spiked back, their mouths open in endless shrieks. Their glowing milky green eyes stayed open, staring in every direction. Long claws dragged against the ground, and its ribs stretched so far they looked ready to tear apart. A sickly green mist poured from its back, carrying the stench of rot and heat. Then the creature let out a deep, broken roar that revealed its sharp teeth, rattling the glass around them. The smaller Gravehowlers gathered around it, as if recognizing their new leader.

  Hikari's blood ran cold. "I-It's a Gravehowler Beast... and it formed right in front of us."

  "Wait-" Slayer blinked, shield half-raised. "That big ugly, smelly thing is a what again?"

  "Gravehowler Beast," Hikari said, her voice tight, "are what happens when too many Gravehowlers converge together. Their bodies fuse into a single abomination. Every limb, every scream, it all combines into one. And to make matters worse, it's stronger, faster, and smarter than the rest of the horde."

  Lumina's eyes narrowed, blade still steady. "Great. So the horde births its own champion. And a smelly one at that, phew." She covered her nose and mouth with her free hand.

  "Not just a champion," Hikari corrected. "An apex predator. Its regeneration is faster, it can spawn more Gravehowlers from its flesh, and its roar... the Corpse Howl can cripple anyone who hears it. If we don't stop it now..." Her gaze flicked to the burning streets below, voice firm. "...it could tear this entire city apart in hours."

  Slayer let out a low whistle, forcing a grin despite the tension. "Oh great, so we're fighting a city-killer. I'm glad there's no pressure there."

  Captain's rifle clicked as he activated Aura Reload. "Then we don't give it hours," he said flatly. "We take it down now. And fast."

  Then the Beast lurched forward - heavy, fast, and hungry for flesh. "Here it comes!" Hikari shouted. "Everyone, get ready!" The Beast didn't halt for a second, claws dragging sparks across the road as it barreled through cars, sending them flying aside. Around it, the lesser Gravehowlers followed, shrieking in unison.

  It struck first. The Beast leaped high and slammed its massive arm into the ground BOOM! a shockwave tearing through the cracked pavement. Cars toppled, glass shattered, and the team staggered back under the blast. But they stood strong.

  "Don't let it break through!" Captain barked, rifle raised. "I'll handle the smaller ones! You guys take care of the Beast." BRRRT! BRRRT! Precise bursts rang out, each shot piercing clean through multiple Gravehowler heads.

  The Beast lunged, its speed defying its massive size. "I'll take point then!" Lumina shouted, blurring forward - her katana flashing as it met the monster's swing. CLANG! Sparks and green aura burst through the air as her blade clashed against rotting bone. For a moment, she held her ground, but the creature twisted unnaturally, matching her speed. Its claws sliced past her cheek, missing by an inch. She spun back gracefully, eyes narrowing. ("Tch, It's keeping up with me.")

  "Over here, ugly!" Slayer roared, dashing toward it with his shield raised high. He slammed into the Beast's flank BOOM! the impact ringing out across the street. The pavement cracked beneath them, but the shield held... until a secondary arm lashed out, hammering him backward into a crumpled bus. CRASH!

  "Slayer!" Hikari cried. The Beast turned, lumbering toward him to finish the job. Hikari's eyes sharpened. "Oh no you don't!" Her drones shot into formation above the creature, their pink cores glowing bright. PEW! PEW! PEW! Beams of energy rained down, tearing into the Beast's back and searing its rotting flesh. ROAGHHH! "Keep pressure on it! I'll cover Slayer!" she shouted.

  Lumina steadied her katana, eyes narrowing. "Then it's time for round two!" She dashed toward the Beast, but then it let out a horrifying roar. Its jaws split wider than humanly possible, and from deep within, a Corpse Howl erupted - a layered scream of countless voices. The sound tore through the street, SHRIEEEK!, shattering glass and forcing the team to their knees. The other Gravehowlers stopped in place, almost as if admiring its howl.

  Captain clutched his head, blood streaking from his ears. "Dammit... it's disorienting us!"

  Lumina staggered, her katana trembling in her grip. The scream rattled through her skull, breaking her focus. She pressed a hand to her temple, teeth clenched. "Ugh... I can't... hold my stance...!"

  Hikari dropped to one knee, hands clamped over her ears. The howl clawed at her skull, threatening to split her thoughts apart. For a moment, panic surged, then she forced her aura to flare, eyes igniting with a sharp pink glow. ("Must... Think... FASTER!")

  Cognitive Acceleration activated!

  In an instant, countless paths lit up before her - threads of pink light weaving through the air like a web of possibilities. Each line glowed with potential outcomes, connecting into a single, perfect route. Small flares of light marked the weak points along the way, showing her exactly where to strike. "I can see everything..." Her breath evened out, and the world slowed to a calm stillness.

  "Now! Activating Aura Tech Link!" She linked the mapped vision into her drones, executing the outcome she'd calculated. At once, the Tech Link Bots guarding Slayer broke formation, circling the Beast and the Gravehowlers around it. Pulses of concentrated aura fired in perfect synchronicity PEW! PEW! PEW! each beam striking the weak points Hikari had mapped: the fused Gravehowlers on its shoulders and back. The Corpse Howl faltered along with the Gravehowlers nearby. Their layered voices stuttered, splintering into static before collapsing into silence. The Beast staggered, its jaw snapping shut as smoke hissed from its throat.

  Hikari exhaled, sweat streaking down her face. "I've got it suppressed... let's keep hitting it while it's weak!"

  Lumina steadied herself, shaking off the lingering pressure in her skull. She cast Hikari a sidelong glance, her tone calm but sincere. "Impressive... you managed to turn this situation around. Well done, Hikari."

  Despite the chaos, Hikari managed a faint, determined smile. "Now, let's make sure that howl never comes back!"

  The moment the sound faded, Captain surged back into the fight, rifle still in SMG mode. "Good work, Hikari. Now, let's keep pressing on!"

  Hikari gave him a firm nod. "Right!"

  Captain then unleashed a burst into the Beast's joints, red aura flaring with every shot. The creature staggered as bullets tore through its muscle, but the flesh re-knit within seconds, steaming as it regenerated. "Dammit! It's healing too fast!" Captain growled.

  "Then we cut faster and deeper than it can regenerate!" Lumina snapped, her katana glowing bright green as she unleashed a flurry of precise, rapid strikes. DING! SHING! The Beast countered with frightening instinct, its limbs twisting unnaturally to parry each blow.

  Hikari's drones dove in, firing beams of concentrated pink energy that burned into its side. PEW! PEW! "It's resisting, but it hurts it! Captain, try to aim where my drones are hitting!"

  "Copy that!" Captain shifted aim and unleashed another crimson burst, BRRT! bullets ripping through black veins. The Beast roared in fury, ROAGHH! the street trembling beneath its weight.

  Slayer finally emerged from the wreckage, armor dented, but still gleaming. "Haha! Don't leave me in the dust now, 'cause I'm ready for round two! That Beast just made Slayer angry!" he shouted.

  "Slayer, you're awake!" Hikari called out, relief flashing across her face.

  Captain glanced over at Slayer, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. "Hmph. Took you long enough."

  "Welcome back, sleepyhead!" Lumina smirked, deflecting another blow with her blade. "Now we could use a little help here!"

  "Invitation accepted!" Slayer roared. He dashed forward and slammed into the Beast's chest with his shield, CLANK! the impact booming through the street. Blue aura sparked on contact as he pushed with all his strength. The Beast's claws raked across the metal, leaving deep gouges, but Slayer held firm. "Lumina, now!"

  In a single motion, Lumina vaulted off a car, katana glowing. She carved down its arm, SHIING! severing tendons. The Beast roared, collapsing to one knee. "Don't let up now!" Captain barked.

  But the monster wasn't finished. Its flesh convulsed, splitting open across its chest. From the wound, parasitic chunks of rotting meat tore free and slithered across the ground - each one twisting and reshaping into smaller Gravehowlers. "You gotta be kidding me?!" Slayer shouted, slamming his sword down on one before it could fully rise. "Take that!" CRUSH!

  "They're spawning from its flesh!" Hikari gasped, her drones cutting down another. "It's creating more Gravehowlers while it fights!"

  "Then we cut it off at the source!" Captain barked. He climbed onto the wrecked bus and activated Configuration Shift. His SMG morphed into a long, sleek sniper form, the barrel glowing red. He took aim at the Beast's chest. "Hikari, boost me!"

  "Already on it!" Hikari's pink aura surged, channeling through her hand toward him. The rifle fused with her energy - red and pink intertwining, humming louder, vibrating with lethal force.

  The Beast raised its massive arm to crush Slayer but Captain fired. BOOM! A red-pink shot tore through its chest, blowing apart the parasitic mass before it could spawn more. Lumina followed with a fierce cry. HAAAH! SHINNG! Her katana thrust forward, then sliced upward, splitting the creature's abdomen in a spray of black gore.

  Slayer roared and thrusted the edge of his shield into its neck, pinning the Beast against a crumbling wall. "End this now, Captain!"

  The sniper fired one last time. BOOM! The shot tore straight through the Beast's skull, splattering black ooze across the wall. The Gravehowler Beast shrieked even as its head was blown apart, GROAAGH! its many voices overlapping in one final scream before collapsing into the rubble, twitching violently... then falling still. Silence followed. The team stood breathing hard, auras fading, and alive. Then... from the shadows of the ruined street, came another wave of howls. The horde wasn't done. Infected poured from alleyways and shattered buildings, drawn by the sound of battle and the flare of aura. Dozens turned into hundreds, their roars rising into a single, horrific chorus. SKRAEEHH!!

  Hikari's eyes widened. "Oh no... there's too many of them. We won't be able to take them all out at once, especially in our current condition."

  Lumina exhaled slowly, sheathing her katana. Her gaze was cold but steady. "Hate to say it, but... were in no position to continue fighting. We must conserve our stamina."

  "Damn," Captain muttered, slotting a fresh magazine through Aura Reload. "We need to find the higher ground and see how bad this really is."

  Slayer gave the Beast's corpse a kick, its twitching frame still leaking black fluid. "Yeah, okay. That one wasn't as fun as I made it look."

  Captain's tone hardened. "No more fighting blind. We find a rooftop, scout the area, and if we can... locate any survivors."

  "Agreed," Lumina said, her tone cutting sharper again. "We first regroup and then we decide how to move through this mess."

  Without another word, the four broke into a sprint, weaving through burning streets as more Gravehowlers poured from shattered windows and side alleys. The sounds of pursuit echoed behind them, guttural howls growing louder with every turn. The team then reached a tall building and threw themselves onto a rusted fire escape ladder, boots clanging against the iron as they climbed toward the rooftop. At the top, they scrambled onto the rooftop. The sight that met them froze them in place.

  Below, the Gravehowlers flooded the streets like ants, hundreds, maybe thousands, crawling over wrecked cars and shattered buildings. The screams of the living echoed among them, people being torn apart, others twisting mid-agony as they turned into new Gravehowlers. The city was burning, entire blocks collapsing under fire and smoke. From above, it looked less like a city... and more like a living, breathing hive of the dead.

  "...This isn't just an outbreak," Hikari whispered, her voice trembling. "It's a war..."