Luke angled the leathery wing like a hang glider and steered toward the roaring bonfire below.
Thud!
He and the half-corpse slamd into the massive roasted beast on the spit. The carcass collapsed under the impact, sending hot grease and at juices spraying everywhere.
The thick hide and layers of fat absorbed most of the shock. Even so, Luke felt like every bone in his body had been rattled loose.
He shoved himself out of the pile of charred at, shaking his head to clear the daze. His whole body ached, and he reeked of roasted flesh.
Lionel and Brando slid down the crater slope and ran over.
"What the hell is that sll? Is this thing even a normal animal?"
Lionel pinched his nose and circled Luke with obvious disgust.
"Better than turning into roadkill."
Luke rolled his neck, glancing at the ruined carcass and the chunks of at clinging to his clothes. Sothing felt off. His panel hadn't given him any experience points.
That monster wasn't dead.
"Where's its head?"
Lionel and Brando froze, then snapped their weapons up and scanned the crater.
The entire pit was eerily quiet. Only the crackling bonfire broke the silence. The deford tribesn's bodies lay stacked in bloody piles on the slope. The few survivors had long since fled into the caves, too terrified to show themselves after the aerial slaughter.
Lionel looked stunned.
"You're telling that thing grew legs and ran off with just a head?"
Luke's eyes moved to the bone throne.
"Where's the so-called Father?"
The throne was empty. The leader had vanished.
"He ran too?"
Lionel snorted.
Brando crouched and studied the ground, shaking his head.
"He didn't go far. This is his kingdom. Everything he cares about is here. He's hiding."
All three turned toward the wide cave mouth the winged monster had co from.
"Looks like the answer's inside."
Luke grabbed the chainsaw from the dirt. It was still coated in rotting gore and slled foul, but the engine roared to life when he fed it psionic energy.
"I'll go first."
He started toward the entrance.
"Wait."
Brando tossed him a flashlight from his pack, then handed one to Lionel. Lionel shouldered the M60 and fed a fresh belt into it.
"This ti I'm on point. That bird-man almost got last ti. Anything jumps out now, I'm turning it into paste."
They moved in single file, flashlights cutting through the darkness and revealing a downward-sloping tunnel with rough, man-made walls.
After roughly fifty ters the passage opened into a vast underground chamber.
Lionel's sarcastic comnt died in his throat.
Rows of tal cabinets and control consoles filled the space, covered in old gauges and buttons. A faded radiation warning sign was still plastered on one wall.
Brando's face lit up with barely contained excitent.
"Nuclear test site. We finally found it. About damn ti."
Luke swept his flashlight across every corner, searching for threats.
"Maybe the radiation turned them into these things."
Brando shook his head.
"Radiation deformities don't last. Most victims die young from organ failure and immune collapse. But the ones outside are strong, organized, and they cull the weak for fighters. This isn't natural mutation. Soone engineered it."
He moved deeper into the chamber toward a heavy tal door with a shattered observation window.
Brando pushed it open.
Beyond lay a long corridor lined with individual rooms.
"Split up. Find that 'Father' bastard. Stay sharp—there could be more surprises down here."
Luke headed left. Lionel went right. Brando went straight for the far end of the hall.
Luke kicked open a door and found a simple dormitory—rusty tal bunks, tattered blankets. Nothing useful.
On the other side, Lionel had better luck.
He pushed open a door and sothing clattered inside.
"Hey! I got sothing!"
Luke and Brando rushed over.
It was a storage room packed with dusty cans and MREs, all with expiration dates from over a decade ago. Lionel's entrance had knocked over a case of canned at.
"Jackpot!"
Lionel's eyes lit up. He pried one open, sniffed it, and scooped a chunk straight into his mouth with his fingers.
"Tastes fine. Bit salty, though."
Luke just stared at him. Brando ignored the food entirely and kept moving toward the end of the corridor.
The main control room sat at the far end. A massive curved glass wall had shattered, giving a clear view of the crater outside. This had clearly been the command center.
A chair made of animal hides and scrap tal sat in front of the main console. It was still warm.
"He was just here."
Brando touched the seat, then his attention locked onto the ancient computer in front of it. The screen was still glowing, lines of code scrolling rapidly.
Brando dropped into the chair and typed furiously. After a string of commands the scrolling stopped and a file directory popped up.
"Got it… I got it!"
His voice was breathless with excitent.
"Every cult operation in this region, plus the original nuclear test data."
He didn't hesitate. He ripped open the computer case, yanked out the hard drive, and carefully packed it away.
"Mission accomplished. We didn't catch the bastard, but we got what we ca for."
Luke frowned at the now-dark screen.
"Why was this thing even on? Unless that guy…"
Brando nodded calmly.
"Three minutes ago an override command was executed."
Luke's gut twisted.
"What command?"
Brando read from the log he'd just pulled.
"Deep Isolation Chamber Gate Lock—Release."
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